A Collector’s Guide to Tiffany Windows
What inspired Louis Comfort Tiffany’s glasswork?
‘Beauty is what nature has lavished upon us as a supreme gift,’ according to Louis Comfort Tiffany (1848-1933). The American artist and designer drew from the sinuous forms of flowers and vines to create resplendent stained-glass works, including his renowned windows. The son of the jeweller Charles Lewis Tiffany (founder of Tiffany & Company), Louis Comfort Tiffany initially trained as a painter. In addition to images from nature, both painting and jewellery design were deeply inspirational to the artist’s work in glass.
Tiffany Studios, Landscape Window with Lotus, c. 1917. Leaded and plated glass, 52⅞ in x 28¾ in (134.5 x 73 cm). Estimate: $600,000-800,000. Offered in Tiffany on 11 December 2024 at Christie’s in New York
Tiffany was inspired by the precious and semi-precious stones used in his father’s jewellery works, from diamonds to agate. Tiffany Studios artisans chose from glass spanning thousands of colours and textures to create windows that reflected the beauty of the natural world, in all its jewel-like complexity. In this, Tiffany aimed to replicate the technique of painting in the medium of glass, combining daubs of colour to form glittering scenes.
What are the main types of Tiffany glass?
One of the defining qualities of Tiffany glass is the incredible variety of colours and patterns of glass that the studio experimented with. Inspired by medieval stained glass works as well as contemporary glassmaking he observed in Europe, Tiffany sought to expand on these techniques at his studio in the United States, which became renowned not only for its designs but for the unique and innovative glass they produced — Tiffany’s patented Favrile glass.
Detail of ripple glass in Tiffany Studios, Landscape Window with Lotus, c. 1917. Leaded and plated glass, 52⅞ in x 28¾ in (134.5 x 73 cm). Estimate: $600,000-800,000. Offered in Tiffany on 11 December 2024 at Christie’s in New York
Detail of confetti glass in Tiffany Studios, Landscape Window with Lotus, c. 1917. Leaded and plated glass, 52⅞ in x 28¾ in (134.5 x 73 cm). Estimate: $600,000-800,000. Offered in Tiffany on 11 December 2024 at Christie’s in New York
‘Favrile glass is distinguished by brilliant or deeply toned colours, usually iridescent like the wings of certain American butterflies, the necks of pigeons and peacocks, the wing covers of various beetles,’ said Louis Comfort Tiffany of the glass he developed with his studio.
The main types of Favrile glass include drapery glass, confetti glass, striated glass and mottled glass. Drapery glass, folded with deep grooves, was often used in large-scale windows for its robust visual and textural impact. This high-relief type gives bold dimensionality to a work.
Tiffany Studios, Landscape Window with Magnolias, Hydrangeas and Azaleas, c. 1915. Leaded and plated Favrile glass, 27 x 48 in (68.5 x 121.9 cm). Sold for $1,470,000 on 26 May 2021 at Christie’s in New York
Confetti glass contains shards that are pressed in between layers of molten glass, resulting in a cacophony of colour reminiscent of pointillism. This type was often used to capture the play of light and motion in a scene, such as the fluttering of leaves.
Artisans created striated glass by mixing two or more colours of molten glass together, creating long, thin strands of contrasting hues. In mottled glass, makers added fluorine to the glass, causing the material to crystallise, achieving the perfect dimpled texture for sun-dappled flowers.
Left: Tiffany Studios, ‘Peacock’ Window, 1910-1915. Leaded and plated glass, 31 x 22⅞ in (78.7 x 58.1 cm). Sold for $352,000 on 10 June 2022 at Christie’s in New York. Right: Tiffany Studios, A ‘Snowball and Wisteria’ Window, 1902. Leaded and plated glass with painted wood frame, 50¼ x 34⅝ in (127.7 x 88 cm). Sold for $499,500 on 12 December 2016 at Christie’s in New York
Where were Tiffany windows originally installed?
While best known for his leaded-glass windows, chandeliers and lamps, Tiffany also produced furniture, mosaics, ceramics, enamels and bronze and brass works. Tiffany Studios, active from 1902 to 1932, focussed on the production of glass and bronze work. The work of Tiffany Studios was highly sought after by major institutions and members of the America’s most prominent families, and custom Tiffany windows can be found in many of the most important churches and private residences of the Gilded Age.
For example, the ‘Cypress and Azalea’ Landscape Window, sold at Christie’s in 2023 as part of The Ann and Gordon Getty Collection: Temple of Wings, was originally commissioned for ‘Carmore’, the Residence of Charles E. Rushmore in Woodbury Falls, New York, circa 1908. Tiffany’s personal estate, the famed Laurelton Hall in Oyster Bay, New York, included the four panels of his impressive ‘Four Seasons’ window, which debuted at the 1900 Exposition Universelle in Paris.
Tiffany Studios, ‘Landscape with Magnolias and Irises’ Window, c. 1910. Leaded and plated glass, 49¾ x 27 in (126.4 cm x 68.6 cm). Sold for $705,600 on 8 December 2023 at Christie’s in New York
Today collectors and enthusiasts pay close attention to a window’s provenance, and works commanding the highest prices often come from the lavishly designed homes of influential captains of industry from the turn of the century. The market also appreciates works that have not been seen on the market for a long time.
What are the most popular subjects of Tiffany windows?
The subjects depicted in Tiffany windows were largely determined by their setting. Tiffany Studios artists were well versed in religious iconography and biblical scenes created for church commissions, while for domestic clients they frequently designed alluring landscapes and florals.
Tiffany Studios, A ‘Peony’ Leaded Glass Window from the Darius Goff House, Pawtucket, RI, 1893. Leaded glass in painted wood frame, 31 x 48½ in (78.7 x 123.2 cm). Sold for $962,500 on 15 December 2010 at Christie’s in New York
Tiffany himself was a talented amateur horticulturist and landscape architect. His Oyster Bay estate was largely covered in flower varietals from all over the world, including native clematis and black-eyed Susans and his favourite wisteria, originally brought over from Asia. In addition to flora like lilies, azaleas and magnolias, Tiffany counted fauna like peacocks and dragonflies amongst his favoured motifs.
Sadly Laurelton Hall fell into disrepair following Tiffany's death in 1933, and its contents were sold by the Foundation in 1949. A devastating fire later destroyed the house in 1957. Most of the house’s windows and other surviving architectural elements are now part of the Charles Hosmer Morse Museum of American Art in Winter Park, Florida, while the estate’s glass, limestone and ceramic columnar screen is now housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
What kinds of interiors do Tiffany windows complement?
A Tiffany window can enhance nearly any style of interior, meshing well with antique, modern and contemporary works, much in the way that a painting would. Contemporary collectors have incorporated Tiffany windows into their spaces in a variety of creative ways.
Tiffany Studios, ‘Cypress and Azalea’ Landscape Window for Carmore, the Residence of Charles E. Rushmore, Woodbury Falls, New York, 1908. Leaded and plated glass, 77½ x 77 in (196.8 x 195.6 cm). Sold for $907,000 on 14 June 2023 at Christie’s in New York
For example, Ann Getty employed a custom light box to display the arched cypress and azalea landscape window originally created in 1908 for the residence of Charles E. Rushmore. Tiffany windows and lamps were a touchstone of Mrs. Getty’s richly layered interiors, in which Art Nouveau and Arts and Crafts works featured prominently and blended seamlessly with art and objects from throughout history.
At once architectural elements, works of art and brilliant apertures for natural light, Tiffany windows are highly versatile, offering collectors myriad ways to bring the maker’s trademark iridescence into their spaces.