Introduction to the Collection Series: Photos, Ephemera, and Patents

Posted on January 7, 2013 by Tracy Savard

For our latest installment in the Introduction to the Collection Series, I bring you three more categories of materials you can find at The Rakow Research Library: photographs, ephemera, and patents.

We have a sizeable photograph collection at the Library and many more photographs reside within our archives, such as the one pictured below. You’ll soon see why it’s no surprise that I chose this photograph to feature.

Photograph of George Otis Gleason taking measurements of 200” disk, bib no. 117727

A childhood memory combined with some luck led me to the discovery that the man in the middle of that 200 inch telescope mirror is my great, great-grandfather! When I was a child, I visited the Museum many times; on one of those visits, I remember my mom pointing to that same disk (it’s still on display and you can see it for yourself!) and told me that a relative of mine was involved it its making. Fast forward many years and – as luck would have it – I happened to be researching photographs for inclusion in the Library’s 2011 exhibition Mirror to Discovery: The 200-Inch Disk and the Hale Reflecting Telescope at Palomar. I joked that the unidentified man inside the center of the disk had to be my relative and presented a photocopy of it to my mom who confirmed my hunch and promptly showed me an identical photograph in her possession. What luck!

The second category of material is ephemera, the term used for various printed or written material intended for short-term use. Some examples of ephemera include baseball cards, invitations, greeting cards, trade cards, menus, and advertisements. If you’re interested in a quick etymology lesson, ephemera comes from the Greek word ephemeros which means lasting about a day. The images below are of two advertising cards for Mishler’s herb bitters (which were sold in glass bottles, of course). The cards proclaim that the bitters alleviated various digestive ailments, among other complaints.

bib no. 69482

Ephemera relating to bitters, bib no. 69482

Lastly, we have a growing collection of patents such as the one featured below. This cut glass design was patented by George E. Hatch in 1886; Hatch owned a cutting shop in Brooklyn in the late 19^th century.

Ornamentation of glassware patent, bib no. 119140

Often, patents can provide unique historical insight because they showcase inventions and progress (and don’t forget popular taste) from a certain era. The patents we have mostly fall within the 19^th and 20^th centuries. Stop by and check out these collections for yourself!

This is the ninth installment of the Rakow Research Library’s Introduction to the Collection Series.
<< Glass Research at The Rakow Research Library | Auction Catalogs >>

The Rakow Research Library is open from 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Monday – Friday
Telephone: 607.438.5300 | Email (general inquiries): rakow@cmog.org

Introduction to the Collection Series: Auction Catalogs

Posted on November 28, 2012 by Julia Corrice

The auction catalog collection at the Rakow Library is an important source of information on glass objects and works of glass art. Auction catalogs provide provenance information about objects as well as detailed illustrations and descriptive characteristics such as dimensions, artist, and year of creation which can be used to identify glass objects. When looked at as a group, auction catalogs can also help track trends and taste of a particular time period or collector.

Christie’s Auction Catalog (New York) June 7, 2001

Christie’s (New York) June 7, 2001

Why is establishing provenance important for museums and other art collectors? The provenance history of an object works as the object’s “genealogy”; it provides a record of names, dates of ownership, means of transference, and locations where the object was kept. These records are very important when evaluating an object’s authenticity, establishing its value, or determining an object’s legal owner.

Early’s Auction Co. auction catalog (Ohio) April 1-2, 2011

Early’s Auction Co. (Ohio) April 1-2, 2011

Bonhams auction catalog (London) November 12, 2002

Bonhams (London) November 12, 2002

The Rakow Library regularly receives more than 50 current auction catalogs a month published by auction houses located all over the world. These range from small, specialized glass auction companies like Glass Works Auctions, to larger, well known auction houses such as Christie’s and Sotheby’s. The Library maintains auction house subscriptions for sale categories where glass objects and art are usually found—these include decorative arts, modern art, antiquities, general antiques, and Asian art. However, there is more to the auction catalog collection than just current sales. A significant number of auction catalogs from the 19^th and early 20^th century can also be found in the collection showing historical sales.

Skinner auction catalog from 1786 featuring the famous Portland Vase

The Rakow Library also provides onsite access to several online auction databases which are great tools for provenance and valuation research at the library. Artfact, AskArt, and Artnet can all be used on their own or with the library’s print auction catalog collection in order to help find sale dates, auction house names, price information, and other useful information about glass objects.

Fun Fact: The Auction Catalog collection is the heaviest group of materials at the Rakow Library, weighing an average of 145 pounds per shelf. By comparison, an average shelf of books weighs about 72 pounds.

This is the eighth installment of the Rakow Research Library’s Introduction to the Collection Series.
<< Glass Research at The Rakow Research Library | Documents >>

The Rakow Research Library is open from 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Monday – Friday
Telephone: 607.438.5300 | Email (general inquiries): rakow@cmog.org

Introduction to the Collection Series: Documents

Posted on October 1, 2012 by Tracy Savard

Another category of materials at the Rakow Research Library is also my personal favorite: the documents. This collection is made up of approximately 7,500 primary source materials including advertisements, billheads, correspondence (personal and commercial), envelopes, glasshouse workers’ currency, invoices, letterheads and stationery, receipts, and stock certificates relating to glass manufacture, trade, industry, art, and design.

Madam J. Rieth's troupe of American and Bohemian glass blowers advertising card, bib no. 112398

J. Hoare & Company stock certificate dated January 29, 1920, bib no. 92684

These documents mostly originate from glass production centers in the United States (mostly Northeast and upper Midwest) and western Europe (primarily England, France, and Germany); the bulk of them date from the second half of the 18^th century through the first half of the 20^thcentury. Perhaps one of the most captivating items from this collection is a letter written by Thomas Jefferson in 1807 during his time as president. His brief words to James Dinsmore concerning glass for window sashes help document plans for his octagonal Poplar Forest plantation retreat in Bedford County, Virginia. This retreat was designed by Jefferson himself as a sanctuary from the popularity of his Monticello home.

Letter from Thomas Jefferson to James Dinsmore dated December 29, 1807, bib no. 126520

We have another presidential document within our collection, this one from Dwight D. Eisenhower. This letter, dated 1964, was written from Eisenhower’s Gettysburg, Pennsylvania home after his visit with Mamie to The Corning Museum of Glass. In it, he thanks former director Paul Perrot for his “courtesy and helpfulness”.

Letter from Dwight D. Eisenhower to Paul Perrot dated October 21, 1964, bib no. 126517

Our documents collection continues to grow and there is always something new and exciting to discover. From a 10 cent admittance ticket to see glassblowers on stage performing with Punch and Judy, to a mid-nineteenth century “fancy glass working” advertisement on an As You Like It playbill, to a Corning Glass Works stock certificate, this collection has something for nearly every glass-related interest.

Playbill for As You Like It, bib no. 107850; Admittance ticket to Gray's glass blowers, bib no. 112399; Corning Glass Works stock certificate, bib no. 89684

The entire collection is available to see here at the Library, so stop by and ask a reference librarian for help!

This is the seventh installment of the Rakow Research Library’s Introduction to the Collection Series.
<< Auction Catalogs | Videos >>

The Rakow Research Library is open from 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Monday – Friday
Telephone: 607.438.5300 | Email (general inquiries): rakow@cmog.org

Introduction to the Collection Series: A Sneak Peek of the Rakow Library’s Video Collection

Posted on August 27, 2012 by Amy De Simone

The Rakow Library owns nearly 3000 videos with new titles constantly being added. Besides DVDs and online videos, this collection also includes VHS, super 8s, mini-DVs, 12” optical discs, 16 and 35mm films, and other formats. Some of the older formatted items have been migrated to DVDs and are viewable in the Library. We have DVD and VHS players in the Library for patrons to watch videos when they visit as this collection is non-circulating. Visiting artists and Studio students are some of the most avid users of these resources.

The Library acquires video materials in support of the instructional, research, and informational scope of its collection policy. Videos are purchased new and used and are often received as gifts from donors, artists or organizations. Some of the most unique videos are those created by artists which have been donated to the Library. Topics covered include glass in its many forms. Educational and instructional videos, documentaries, lectures, presentations, non-commercial productions, and other videos aid in the study and research of glass. The collection also contains a few fictional and animated features. Videos are collected in any language. When possible, we purchase two copies of videos so that one can be used by patrons and one can be placed in our secured stacks. All copies are stored in temperature and humidity controlled shelving areas for increased longevity.

Video section in the Rakow Library

Recently we received The automatic glass bottle blower: an end to an atrocity as a gift. This film, made by two high school seniors, documents child labor in the glass industry in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and examines how the invention of the Owens Automatic Bottle Machine led to a decline in child labor. The machine eliminated many positions that had previously been staffed by children. The film has won several awards and includes objects from the Library collection. The oldest video in the collection, from approximately 1910, is about the Owens Bottle Machine.

Another interesting work is Buster Simpson’s Pilchuck tapes 1971-1973. These tapes detail the creation of and activities at Pilchuck Glass school through Simpson’s footage of participants and instructors including Fritz Dreisbach, Dale Chihuly, Gianni Toso, Erwin Eisch, Toots Zynsky, Harvey Littleton and others. Unedited, these videos detail original studio concepts and the roots of Pilchuck.

In addition to the videos held in the Library, the Museum offers an extensive collection of videos both on our YouTube channel and our website.

This is the sixth installment of the Rakow Research Library’s Introduction to the Collection Series.
<< Book Collection | Documents >>

The Rakow Research Library is open from 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Monday – Friday

Telephone: 607.438.5300 | Email (general inquiries): rakow@cmog.org
Explore the collection online using the classic catalog or the Library’s collection browser.

Wedding Gift for a Princess

Posted on August 17, 2012 by Beth Hylen

Our former reference librarian, Virginia Wright, used to say our vertical files are full of “trash and treasures.” You can find magazine and newspaper articles, brochures, pamphlets, photographs, and all kinds of snippets of information about glass and glassmaking in the file folders.

I like to think the files are full of stories. I’m a former Girl Scout named “Elizabeth” and I couldn’t resist the stories found in one folder containing clippings dated 1947 about a gift which the Girl Scouts gave Her Royal Highness Princess Elizabeth as a wedding present.

Princess Elizabeth Thanks the Girl Scouts

One clipping shows an excited thirteen-year-old Girl Scout, Janice Samuels, reading a thank you note:

…the message from the Princess to the Girl Scouts of the United States was in answer to the crystal paperweight inscribed with the Girl Scout trefoil insignia that the organization had sent the heir presumptive to the British throne. The insignia is similar to the emblem of the British Girl Guide organization in which the Princess is a Chief Ranger.

Another identifies the Girl Scout paperweight as made by Steuben Glass, Inc.

Girl Scout Gift, November 3, 1947

Princess Elizabeth received two other gifts created by Steuben Glass: an engraved “Merry-Go-Round” bowl from President and Mrs. Truman and 12 engraved Audubon plates from Ambassador and Mrs. Lewis Douglas.

Steuben Merry-Go-Round Bowl

According to an account in the Pottery Gazette and Glass Trade Review, Aug. 1948, The British Glass Industry presented “a full suite of cut and engraved table ware…for 24 persons” with a design selected by the Princess. Each piece was “engraved with the Princess’s cornet.”

Pottery Gazette and Glass trade Review 8-1948, p707

These pieces of glass were among thousands of gifts Princess Elizabeth received. A newspaper article by Elizabeth Raymond in the Lawrence, Kansas Journal-World describes crowds thronging to see the Princess’ wedding gifts at The Palace of St. James in London: “There are…all the things any bride has ever dreamed of and as many more. Their common characteristic is the obvious fact that each giver tried to offer the very nicest thing imaginable…[with]…loving intent.” In addition to glassware, china and silver, there were diamonds given by …the maharajahs of India and diamond merchants of South Africa.” In contrast, she also received a Frigidaire and a dishwasher. The author comments, “Princess Margaret gave a fitted picnic basket which struck us as one of the most useful presents anyone could have.” Six weeks after the wedding the exhibit was still drawing 3500 to 4000 people a day.

Other clippings in the folder describe a display at the Fifth Avenue showrooms of Steuben Glass Inc. where, for “25 cents a look,” you could view reproductions of the wedding gifts from President Truman and Ambassador Lewis W. Douglas. The proceeds were used to buy food for the needy in England.

Some libraries are eliminating their vertical files in the internet age. These types of files were often used by public and school libraries to collect information about current events for school children and they rapidly became outdated.

Our files are still in constant use. They provide access to a wide variety of historical ephemera by subject, ranging from information about the little-known Addison Glass Works, to scholarly articles about medieval engraved Hedwig beakers. Would you like to read about Frank Lloyd Wright and his use of Pyrex tubing to create “window-walls”? We have a folder ready for your perusal.

The Rakow Library is open to the public from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm weekdays. We are also open Sunday afternoons from 12:00-5:00 pm until September 9, 2012.

For more information, please call the reference desk: 607-438-5300 or email: rakow@cmog.org

Introduction to the Collection Series: Exhibition Catalogs, Price Guides, and Batch Books! Oh, my!

Posted on August 2, 2012 by Amy De Simone

At the core of The Rakow Research Library is the book collection, numbering approximately 37,500 titles. We try to obtain every book on the history and art of glass and glassmaking, meaning new, old, and rare volumes are constantly being added to the collection. The acquisitions team is responsible for purchasing books and receives suggestions from reference librarians, curators, and other museum staff. There are three primary ways in which books are acquired. They can be purchased from a vendor, they can be received as an exchange from other libraries, museums or universities, or they can come in as donations. With “glassy” books, we try to obtain one copy for public use and a second non-circulating copy.

Recent acquisitions in the Rakow Library

Recent acquisitions are put out to view.

Along with the obvious glassy subjects such as glassmaking techniques, stained glass, glass artists, and glass company histories; topics range from architecture to Christmas ornaments to neon and beads. Fiction, children’s books, craft instruction and pattern books, glass dictionaries, and identification and price guides are here, too. We have unique materials that are self-published by contemporary artists. In addition to those, we also collect in subject areas that support glass research, including archaeology, ceramics, and other decorative arts, to name a few. Materials in our collection can be found in more than 50 different languages. The oldest book dating back to approximately 1150 is the Mappae Clavicula, which was hand-copied by monks and contains formulae for making colored glass.

Rakow Library rare books in secured stacks

A few rare books in the Rakow Library secured stacks

Kelly Bliss is in charge of cataloging the book collection. Nearly 50% of the book cataloging that Kelly does is original, meaning that no other library reports holding that item. Kelly’s favorite book in the Library is a William Leighton Batch book, which was donated by the family in 1993. A batch book is a glassmaker’s recipe book for different types and colors of glass. Dated October 1850, this miniature book inside a leather case was written by hand and contains 46 pages of recipes that easily fit in the palm of your hand. Additional miniature pages contain typed up recipes. Like many other items in our collection, it is one-of-a-kind.

William Leighton batch book. Bib. #44510

Though we used to microfilm rare books for preservation and circulation, they are now being digitized for increased accessibility. Some books have been put on “page turning” software and are available on our website allowing patrons to read the digitized versions. We are happy to lend any books through Interlibrary Loan provided that we hold at least two copies, and we encourage you to visit and see the collection first hand. Kelly says, “People can’t imagine what we have . . . to look at all of the different topics we have, they would be amazed.”

The Juliette K. and Leonard S. Rakow Research Library Open Stacks

One aisle of the Rakow Library open stacks

This is the fifth installment of the Rakow Research Library’s Introduction to the Collection Series.
<< Article Index | Videos >>

The Rakow Research Library is open from 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Monday – Friday
Telephone: 607.438.5300 | Email (general inquiries): rakow@cmog.org
Explore the collection online using the classic catalog or the Library’s collection browser.

Introduction to the Collection Series: The Rakow Research Library Article Index

Posted on July 3, 2012 by Peter Bambo-Kocze

Article Index is one of the Rakow Research Library’s two main holding catalogs. It is locally created, maintained, and edited by the bibliographer and other staff members of the library. It contains citations to articles in journals, magazines, newsletters, and other periodicals owned by the library. Article Index also contains citations to book chapters, known as analytic entries. The Rakow Research Library’s periodical collection covers a wide range of topics and time periods, the common thread being the presence of glass content. Consequently, a typical stack of periodicals that ends up on the bibliographer’s cart would likely contain a selection from the following:

Journals and magazines with sole focus on glass (Glass Art, Glass Club Bulletin, Glashaus, etc.)
Archaeology journals covering all time periods and geographic locations (Medieval Archaeology, Slovenská Archelógia, Journal of Roman Archaeology, etc.)
Newsletters, bulletins, annual reports, acquisitions, and catalogs of museums, collectors’, or historical societies (La Revue des Musées de France, NewsJournal of the Early American Pattern Glass Society, Annual Bulletin of the Paperweight Collectors Association Inc., etc.)
Publications focusing on one type of glass, such as historical stained glass, beads, bottles, paperweights, marbles, etc. (Stained Glass, Glass Bead, Bottles and Extras, etc.)
Journals and magazines focusing on one geographic area or culture (Arts of Asia, American Indian Art Magazine, African Arts, etc.)
Journals, magazines, and newspapers covering the antiques and collectibles field (Antiques and the Arts Weekly, Antique Collecting, The Magazine Antiques, etc.)
Journals and magazines covering the arts (fine, decorative, and applied), art history, crafts, design, and interior decoration (Form Function Finland, Design Matters, Deutsche Kunst und Dekoration, etc.)
Journals and magazines with focus on contemporary architecture, interior design, and lighting (L’Architecture d’Aujourd’hui, Domus, Metropolis, etc.)
Journals and other publications covering the fields of glass science, technology, conservation, and industry (Glass Technology, Rivista della Stazione Sperimentale del Vetro, Glass International, etc.)

: Annual Bulletin of the Paperweight Collectors Association, Inc.

: Glashaus

: Bottles and Extras

: Slovenská Archeológica

: Antiques and The Arts Weekly

While the Rakow Research Library theoretically collects materials in all languages, those most commonly occurring in the library’s approximately 850 current periodical subscriptions are: English, French, German, Italian, Czech, Spanish, Russian, Dutch, Polish, Swedish, Hungarian, Danish, Romanian, Serbo-Croatian, Slovak, Ukrainian, Portuguese, Hebrew, Arabic, Turkish, Mandarin, Japanese, Korean, and Greek.

In addition, articles can also be found in the so-called Vertical Files (VF), located in steel cabinets along the wall of the stacks area. This resource typically contains offprints of book chapters and photocopies of articles from older issues of newspapers and magazines. Article Index holdings can be searched online at http://www.cmog.org/research/library/catalogs.

Finally, below is a small puzzle based on the more creative/poetic periodical titles in the collection of the Rakow Research Library. Try to match the phrases below with the actual periodical titles at the bottom of the page. Every phrase should have at least one match, and some titles do not have matching phrases. We’ll post the answers next week.

– used to deal in more lucrative merchandise

– no one knows for sure, but everyone claims to have it

– the best efforts of a slacking college student

– not a Spice Girls band member

– my 1998 e-vectra desktop computer

– two crows playing poker

– arsonist’s favorite magazine

– the troubles of arctic scuba divers

– he’s out on bail again

– when you run out of nouns and adjectives

The Beadazzled Beadstringer, Crown Jewels of the Wire, The Cutting Edge, Expanded Vision, Goofus Glass Gazette, Home Lighting & Accessories, The Locktender, Milk Dealer, Miniature News, Occasional Papers, Out’n About, The Plain Truth, Pole Top Discoveries, The Rocky Mountain Druggist, Salty Comments, Things, Tiny Times, Whispering Wind, Wooden Nutmeg.

This is the fourth installment of the Rakow Research Library’s Introduction to the Collection Series.
<< Trade Catalogs | Exhibition Catalogs, Price Guides, and Batch Books >>

The Rakow Research Library is open from 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Monday – Friday
Telephone: 607.438.5300 | Email (general inquiries): rakow@cmog.org

Introduction to the Collection Series: Trade Catalogs for Glass Research at The Rakow Research Library

Posted on June 12, 2012 by Amy De Simone

The Rakow Library is home to an extensive collection of glass company trade catalogs. Approximately 17,000 trade catalogs in various languages, representing firms worldwide, are housed in our temperature and humidity controlled secure stacks with preservation in mind.

19th century Silber and Fleming glass trade catalog. Bib. #89888

19th century Silber and Fleming trade catalog. Bib. #89888

A trade catalog is issued by a manufacturer, distributor, wholesales, or retailer with the intention of promoting business. Trade catalogs are invaluable resources for identifying manufacturer’s styles, patterns, dates of production, and original prices. They also provide background on economical and social circumstances for the times in which they were published.

Trade catalogs are primarily used for identification purposes by an audience of collectors, researchers, curators, and members of the public wanting to identify glass objects. For ease of access, we have categorized trade catalogs into the following subject areas: bottles and druggists’ glassware, cut glass, flat glass (including stained and architectural), laboratory ware (including industrial and optical), lighting glassware and lamps, tableware, tools (glass blowing and working tools), glass art, paperweights, and glass jewelry, among others.

1923 McKee Glass Company cut glass lamp trade catalog. Bib. #28854

1923 McKee Glass Company trade catalog. Bib. #28854

19th century F. and C. Osler glass chandelier trade catalog. Bib #92821

19th century F. and C. Osler trade catalog. Bib #92821

The Rakow Library is committed to acquiring and preserving these materials and pursues expansion of the collection. Sheila Tshudy, in charge of trade catalogs, contacts firms, works with rare and second hand book dealers, and searches eBay to find new additions. The ever-growing collection is also supplemented by gifts from generous donors.

Though our trade catalogs do not circulate, they are all available for use in the Library and we do loan microform copies, if available, through Interlibrary Loan. A large part of this collection was microfilmed and we have over 1,000 microform catalogs which were filmed with permission while on loan to us from other institutions and private individuals. The earliest dated catalog is a price list from 1722, from the firm Manufacture Royale des Glaces de France (Saint-Gobain) entitled Tarif du prix de glaces de la Manufacture royale.

Digitization of select trade catalogs from the collection allows us to provide access to these unique resources via our website. The digital collection is continually growing, and currently more than 200 trade catalogs are available digitally to be viewed in their entirety. We encourage you to visit The Rakow Research Library and consult these valuable resources.

This is the third installment of the Rakow Research Library’s Introduction to the Collection Series.
<< Prints & Drawings | Article Index >>

The Rakow Research Library is open from 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Monday – Friday
Telephone: 607.438.5300 | Email (general inquiries): rakow@cmog.org

Introduction to the Collection Series: Prints & Drawings

Posted on May 22, 2012 by Tracy Savard

Of the many resources found in The Rakow Research Library, prints and drawings are among our most fascinating. As the Library’s Cataloging Specialist for works in this category, I have the opportunity to surround myself with these items on a daily basis. Currently, we hold several thousand of these prints and drawings and our collection is constantly expanding. Each piece contributes to the wealth of information that the Library offers on the history, art, business, and science of glass and glassmaking.

Our prints and drawings are stored flat in a secure, climate-controlled environment in either print boxes or flat file storage units. And, depending on their fragility and media, they are also matted, housed in mylar (archival quality polyester film), or in acid-free folders, as their continued preservation is of the utmost importance.

Anne Gant, Drawing #3, 2010. Burn marks and pencil on paper ; 27 x 19 cm.

Two of my personal favorites are fairly recent acquisitions. The first is a pyrography by Anne Gant. Pyrography is a term used to refer to burn marks left on a material by the controlled application of a heated object. In this case, the artist has used the application of hot glass onto wet sheets of rag paper to create stunning imprints. Drawing #3 is a pyrography she completed in 2010 of a vessel with two handles on a double layer of Rives BFK cotton rag paper.

Fallbrook vitreograph by Harvey K. Littleton

Harvey K. Littleton, Fallbrook, 1993. Ink and pencil on paper ; 56 x 65 cm.

My second favorite, Fallbrook, is a vitreograph by Harvey K. Littleton, one of the founders of the American Studio Glass movement. Vitreography is a printmaking technique that uses the altered surface (for example, through cutting) of a glass plate to hold ink for its transfer to paper in an etching press. This limited edition, four color print was hand printed on Rives BFK acid-free paper in 1993 and was acquired by the Library in 2011. It captures a piece of Corning’s glassmaking history – the glass plant formerly located on Tioga Avenue, just across the bridge from The Corning Museum of Glass.

Each piece beautifully embodies the artist’s remarkable and unconventional use of glass.

Also inside this collection are prints and drawings that use other forms of media such as chalk, charcoal, watercolor, pencil, and ink. They are all available to see – just stop by The Rakow Research Library and ask a reference librarian for help.

This is the second installment of the Rakow Research Library’s Introduction to the Collection Series.
<< Glass Research at The Rakow Research Library | Trade Catalogs >>

The Rakow Research Library is open from 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Monday – Friday
Telephone: 607.438.5300 | Email (general inquiries): rakow@cmog.org

May Flowers at the Rakow Library: Design Drawings by the Tiffany Girls

Posted on May 9, 2012 by Nive Chatterjee

The Rakow Research Library holds eight original Tiffany drawings: Branches Bearing Yellow Berries, Chestnut Leaves, Dandelion Plant, Marsh Marigold, Peonies, Thistle, Violets and Yellow Berries. All of them except for Branches Bearing Yellow Berries have the titles handwritten on them. Five of the drawings are signed by Alice C. Gouvy and two by Lillian A. Palmié (Peonies is the unsigned drawing and was most probably also completed by Gouvy or Palmié). All of the drawings are watercolors that have the Tiffany Furnaces stamp, five of the drawings have the Enamel Dept. S. G .Co. (Stourbridge Glass Company) stamp, and three of the drawings are dated 1902. Violets at 24 cm by 29 cm, is the smallest drawing and Chestnut Leaves measuring 48 cm by 66 cm, and Thistle at 64 cm by 45 cm, are the two largest.

Chestnut Leaves design drawing for Tiffany Furnaces by Alice C. Gouvy

These drawings were water damaged, most likely in the flood of 1972 when Hurricane Agnes struck the Corning area. When I first saw them, I can remember seeing embedded grime, discoloration, tidemarks, and tears. In 2007, the eight drawings were taken to The Westlake Conservators in Skaneateles, New York, where paper objects and photographic materials conservator, Michele Philips treated and matted these drawings.

: Dandelion Plant

: Peonies

: Yellow Berries

The artists, Gouvy and Palmié, are documented in New Light on Tiffany: Clara Driscoll and the Tiffany Girls by Martin Eidelberg, Nina Gray and Margaret K. Hofer, 2007. Lillian Palmié was born in Brooklyn, NY around 1871-74 and was at Tiffany Studios by 1897. Her twin sister, Marion Palmié also worked for the firm. Alice Carmen Gouvy was born in Cleveland, OH, around 1870-75. She graduated from Cleveland School of Art in 1894, moved to New York and probably started working for Tiffany then. Clara Driscoll’s work is unraveled in this book from her letters to her family. She was employed by Louis Comfort Tiffany as a creative artist from the late 1880s until around 1909 and led a staff of women known as the “Tiffany Girls” that included Gouvy and Palmié. They worked behind the scenes and made a valuable contribution to Tiffany’s creations. Gouvy and Palmié and other ladies of a small female staff were part of the enamel and pottery department under Driscoll’s direction. Their drawings are the first step in the process of creating designs and decorative objects produced by the enamel department. Importantly, Driscoll reveals that Tiffany generally approved of her ideas, and rarely did he make changes to her designs.

Branches Bearing Yellow Berries design drawing for Tiffany Furnaces by Alice C. Gouvy and Lillian A. Palmié

Branches Bearing Yellow Berries design drawing for Tiffany Furnaces by Lillian A. Palmié

Two of the drawings, Thistle and Marsh Marigold were on loan to the New York Historical Society through May, for inclusion in their traveling exhibition titled A New Light on Tiffany: Clara Driscoll and the Tiffany Girls at The Henry Morrison Flagler Museum in Palm Beach, Florida.

Marsh Marigold design drawing for Tiffany Furnaces by Alice C. Gouvy

Thistle design drawing for Tiffany Furnaces by Alice C. Gouvy

Corning Museum of Glass

Behind the Glass

Tag Archives: library collection

Introduction to the Collection Series: Photos, Ephemera, and Patents

Introduction to the Collection Series: Auction Catalogs

Introduction to the Collection Series: Documents

Introduction to the Collection Series: A Sneak Peek of the Rakow Library’s Video Collection

Wedding Gift for a Princess

Introduction to the Collection Series: Exhibition Catalogs, Price Guides, and Batch Books! Oh, my!

Introduction to the Collection Series: The Rakow Research Library Article Index

Introduction to the Collection Series: Trade Catalogs for Glass Research at The Rakow Research Library

Introduction to the Collection Series: Prints & Drawings

May Flowers at the Rakow Library: Design Drawings by the Tiffany Girls