This rare Tiffany Lamp features a fine example of Tiffany Studios’ rare leaded glass Pansy Shade with particularly fine glass selection evident in the flowers.
The Pansy shade is likely one of Clara Driscoll’s early designs. The background of the dome-shaped leaded glass shade of this example is formed by gridded Tiffany Glass in a warm amber orange color which is more deeply saturated near the lower edge, shifting to a creamier tone near the shade’s crown. A meandering band of pansies, including clusters of flowers and individual blooms, serves as a decorative horizontal border near the lower margin of the shade; unlike many of Tiffany Studios leaded glass shades with floral “borders,” the flowers in this version of the Pansy shade float directly above the gridded glass, and the floral motif does not feature any border rows or framing devices separating it from the background glass.
The flowers in this shade are highly realistic representations of pansies. Each flower is articulated in a different combination of colors, textures and types of Tiffany Glass, ranging from dramatic streaky deep purple glass to translucent rippled opalescent white and mottled blue. The flowers are surrounded by foliage in variegated shades of green. This shade is a showcase of the skill of the Tiffany Girls who selected the glass for the floral portion of the shade.
The shade is paired with a Library Standard "Mushroom" Base in rich deep brown patina.
A related example of this shade was part of the collection of Dr. Egon Neustadt; this shade is now part of the permanent collection of the New-York Historical Society where it is on permanent display in the museum’s acclaimed Gallery of Tiffany Lamps.
Diameter: 16 inches (40.6 cm)
Height: 23 inches (58.4 cm)
References:
Martin Eidelberg, Alice Cooney Frelinghuysen, Nancy McClelland, Lars Rachen, The Lamps of Tiffany Studios (New York, 2005), pp. 147 and 205 (for the base)
Margaret K. Hofer and Rebecca Klassen, The Lamps of Tiffany Studios: Nature Illuminated (Skira Rizzoli Publications, Inc, 2016), p. 100 (for the shade)
Dr. Egon Neustadt, The Lamps of Tiffany (New York, 1970), p. 63, pl. 87 (for the base)