FROM THE COLLECTION

Vase, c. 1904–14

Celery stalks
Glazed white clay
Tiffany Studios
11.12 inches
(74-026)

Louis Comfort Tiffany (1848–1933) debuted his pottery to an international audience at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis in 1904 after being inspired by ceramics he saw in Paris in 1900. At the time, there was an unprecedented American interest in ceramics as decorative art. In Tiffany’s pottery, one is struck by the artist’s ability to produce what amounts to representational sculpture, often nearly life-size of the natural world. In every case, the actual function of the pieces is trumped by their aesthetic qualities as sculpture. By this artistic achievement they are made universally comprehensible. Fruits, flowers, grasses and vegetables—such as in the celery vase pictured here—are depicted in highly recognizable, quickly-comprehended images that represent the real world with a high degree of immediacy. On the other hand, Tiffany's brilliant manipulation of naturalism becomes apparent upon further examination. When viewed head-on at eye level, the celery vase—or, if you will, the celery sculpture—becomes not only stalks expanded and interfolded at the base with leaves spreading out at the top, but a Corinthian column—an impression promoted not only by the manipulated silhouette but by the shiny white glazed surface and classical stillness of the architecture. The vase is currently on view alongside other examples of Tiffany pottery in Gallery VIII.

September 11, 2012

Secrets of Tiffany Glassmaking Updated, Reinstalled

The Museum’s popular teaching exhibition Secrets of Tiffany Glassmaking has been updated and relocated. Through art objects, tools, photographs, and artifacts, the exhibition explains the techniques and processes Tiffany’s designers and artisans used to create mosaics, blown-glass vases, and leaded-glass windows and lamps. The new installation includes additional archival images from Tiffany Studios and expanded information on the designers who worked for Tiffany, including Clara Driscoll (1861–1944), the artist who supervised the Women’s Glass Cutting Department and designed many Tiffany lampshades. The updated show includes a video showing the conservation of the Black-eyed Susan hanging lamp, c. 1904, that Tiffany installed at his Laurelton Hall estate and which is now on view in the Museum’s new Tiffany wing.

Detail, Electrolier, c. 1904
Black-eyed Susan
Leaded glass
Tiffany Studios
(67-018)

2012–2013 Exhibitions
Information Now
Available Online

The Morse Museum’s schedule of new exhibitions for the 2012–2013 season is now available on our Web site. Plans include a focus exhibition on a major painting by Lockwood de Forest and a special show designed to offer a fresh perspective on the Art Nouveau style. Other new installations include an informal display of recent acquisitions and a vignette featuring fountain pens from the collection. Early this fall, this information will be published in the Museum’s Exhibitions & Programs brochure.

Vase, c. 1900
Glass with silver overlay
Glasfabrik Johann Loetz-Witwe, Klostermühle, Bohemia (now Czech Republic), 1836–1947
(GL-010-83)

Members Get Two-for-One Admission to Area Museums during Swaptember

The Morse has joined with five other Central Florida museums and arts organizations to offer members two-for-one admission throughout the month of September. This month, bring a valid Morse Museum membership card and photo ID to the Albin Polasek Museum and Sculpture Gardens, Harry P. Leu Gardens, Mennello Museum of American Art, Orange County Regional History Center, and the art and history museums of Maitland for two-for-one adult admission. Members of those participating museums will also receive the same special admissions price at the Morse. Not a member? Join the Morse now to fully participate in all the Morse’s programs and events this season.

Morse Museum members will receive two-for-one admission at local museums throughout the month of September.