Tiffany Studios

Siegfried Bing, Paris
Private Collection, Germany
Von Zezschwitz, Munich, April 15, 2008, lot 879
Sinai and Sons Ltd., London

Louis Comfort Tiffany:  Couleurs et Lumière, Museé du Luxembourg, Paris, September 16, 2009-January 17, 2010
Musée des Beaux-Arts de Montreal, February 11-May 2, 2010
Virginia Museum of Art, Richmond, VA, May 28-August 15, 2010

Overall in very good condition. The exterior surfaces of the glass vase with a few very small and minor inclusions inherent in the making, and with what appears to be a few drips of molten glass also inherent in the making. One of these “drips” (or possibly an inclusion) at mid-waist below the shoulder has what appears to be a semi-circular arched-shaped fault (1/8 inch) which by all accounts appears to be inherent in the making. This fault is encased and does not penetrate through the glass, nor is it easily visible or detracting. The silver mount is in very good condition, showing minimal gentle wear and traces of tarnish. All of the five mounted opals appear undisturbed and in very good condition, displaying strong luminosity. An exceedingly rare example, displaying superb form, proportion, and execution. The vase is beautifully asymmetric with strong iridescence and color, and the mount is exquisitely executed and harmonious with the vase. The body is applied with secondary glass including a rare silver Cypriote-like surface that was distended to create the decoration. The small “o” mark series can be associated with several other vases sent to Bing in Europe which were marked in the same manner.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

About 1897, Siegfried Bing changed the nature of his recently-opened gallery, L'Art Nouveau.  Neither the Paris press nor the French populace had particularly liked the mixture of Belgian and English furniture that he was showing, nor did they appreciate the juxtaposition of English metalwares, Scandinavian porcelains, and American glass.  To counteract this xenophobia, Bing hired a staff of three new designers—Eugéne Gaillard, Edouard Colonna, and Georges de Feure—to create works in all media that were unified in style and more elegantly French in appearance.

One of the first assignments given to Colonna was to create silver mountings for Bing's unsold stock of Chinese snuff bottles, Tiffany glass, and French pottery.  As can be seen in this beautiful object, Colonna transformed an organically shaped and lustrous Tiffany vase into a precious objet d'art.  A svelte silver ribbon embraces the equally asymmetrical shape of Tiffany's vessel, and the opals set within the mount beautifully compliment the gentle iridescence of the favrile glass.  Like a painting by Whistler, there is a harmony in tones—something that Tiffany always sought to establish in his use of combined materials although here, of course, Tiffany had nothing to say in the creation of this work once the glass left his factory.  It is not a pitcher, though there is a vague suggestion of this.  Rather, it is a functionless objet intended for display and admiration.  Moreover, both the vase and the mount are each one-of-a-kind—thus heightening the sense of a costly, precious object.

Colonna's authorship of this design is attested to by a photograph pasted on a sheet of heavy paper now in the Newark Public Library in Newark, New Jersey.  The other photos on this page show two Alexandre Bigot ceramics with mounts by Colonna, as well as two silver sugar spoons and a silver lamp base designed by Colonna.  These and other photographs and original drawings were donated in the 1920s by the artist himself, when he was leaving the United States to retire to France.  The Bigot/Colonna pitcher in the upper left corner and the spoon at the right are now in the Musée des arts Décoratifs, Paris, but the other objects, like most of these unique pieces designed by Colonna, seem not have survived.  Certainly very few Tiffany favrile vases with Colonna mountings remain; other than the present example, one is in the Copenhagen Museum of Glass, another is in the Corning Museum of Glass, and the third is in a private collection.

--Dr. Martin Eidelberg