|
|
|
ART OF STAINED GLASS Louis Comfort Tiffany, and his contemporary John LaFarge, were visionaries and completely revolutionized the art of glass. Tiffany in particular, possessing the financial means to produce his own glass and bankroll the abundant and fruitful experimentation of his brilliant employee John Nash, was able to impart a new style into very conservative subjects and treatments. A celebrated member of the Arts and Crafts movement, which rejected the aesthetics of mass production in favor of opulent, one-of-a-kind utilitarian and decorative objects, Tiffany never strayed far from the influence of his voyage to North Africa, Morrocan orientalism and European classical revivalism. His emphasis on opalescent glass and reliance of the patterns within the glass itself was virtuosic. He avoided glass painting unless absolutely necessary, for instance in depicting hands and faces, and even in this instance, he tended to rely heavily on enamels and chiara oscuro rather than line drawing. When Tiffany went bankrupt in the the early thirties, the secret to manufacturing much of his glass was lost, John Nash's precious notes destroyed. Spearheaded by Uroboros Glass' Eric Lovell and John W. Triggs in the seventies, the long march to re-invent Tiffany's glass began. Together today, these two companies provide glass artisans with a bewildering array of color glass in many styles and textures. Youghiogheny Glass Youghiogheny Glass is a Pennsylvania manufacturer of superlative glass. It possesses a certain grittiness, rather than "glassiness," that allows it to appear opalescent without the use of the milky opacifying agents seen elsewhere. Thus it is the brightest glass on the market; as light passes through it, Youghiogheny Glass glows. Being primarily a "light transmitter" it reflects very little light and therefore appears very dark and lifeless if not backlit. Most Youghiogheny glass has subtle, organic colors that are useful when boldness needs to be avoided. In addition to their stipple glass, some of which is shown below, they produce a variety of softly colored ring mottles whose beauty is an asset to natural scenes. MISC. STIPLES (YOUGHIOGHENY GLASS)    Uroboros Glass Uroboros Glass operates out of Portland, Oregon. Here is where you'll find a bewildering array of vivid colors and textures that make a strong statement. The herringbone ripple is invaluable for leaf veins, angel wings, flowers with fluted petals. Granite texture may not have a firm vocation in the glass pantheon, it's a catch-all that enhances the sparkle of the color. Fracture-streamer is very organic, and much of a specialty; no one does a fracture-streamer like Uroboros; it is irreplaceable for backgrounds, plating, etc. Drapery glass, which must be cut with a saw, is traditionally used for magnolia, though Tiffany himself used abundantly to represent folds in cloth, but he had each piece of drapery custom made. HERRINGBONE RIPPLE (UROBOROS)  GRANITE (UROBOROS)  GRANITE MOTTLE (UROBOROS)  FRACTURE-STREAMER (UROBOROS)  DRAPERY (UROBOROS)  Bullseye Glass Much to my chagrin, Bulleseye has stopped manufacturing its gaudy ring mottles a few years ago. If you find a piece you like in the store, buy it! They're not going to make more later. Their turquoise was to die for, and some mottles were so bold as to look painted on. RING MOTTLE (BULLSEYE)      |