The first exhibition to explore Louis C. Tiffany's glass mosaics – an extraordinary but little-known aspect of his artistic production – opens at The Corning Museum of Glass in May 2017. Tiffany's Glass Mosaics will include objects ranging from intimately scaled mosaic fancy goods to large-scale mosaic panels and architectural elements. Many of Tiffany's mosaic murals are still installed in their original settings and will be represented in the exhibition by photographs and through the use of digital displays.
In support of this exhibition and the accompanying publication, CMoG's photographers captured mosaic installations in eight locations across New York State, and six more sites in Philadelphia, Baltimore, Princeton, and Chicago. Glass mosaics are difficult to photograph well in any circumstances, but this project presented additional challenges. Most of the large mosaic panels are high above floor level, existing lighting is insufficient, available power is limited, and almost all of the sites are open to the public.
Strategic planning for this project will be examined in this talk, as well as practical solutions which enabled us to adapt to a wide variety of conditions while capturing well-lit, high quality images with consistent color and detail – all within the constraints of a limited budget. Adaptation of studio lighting techniques for highly reflective, often iridescent, glass mosaics on location will be discussed, as well as equipment modified specifically for this project.
Images from this project will be presented as part of an immersive digital exhibition experience and will live on in the accompanying publication, but they also serve much a broader purpose as documentation of at-risk cultural treasures. Many of these mosaics had never before been professionally photographed, and the images are being used to promote awareness and appreciation for the various sites, as well as serving as a record of current condition for conservation efforts.
7. Reredos with
cross, after 1910.
Tiffany Studios.
Glass mosaic with
glass jewels. Christ
Episcopal Church,
Corning, New York.
8. Interior of First Presbyterian
Church, Bath, New York,
1895–1897. Tiffany Glass
and Decorating Company.
9. Interior of Willard Memorial
Chapel, Auburn, New York,
1892. Tiffany Glass and
Decorating Company,
designed by Jacob Adolphus
Holzer (American, b.
Switzerland, 1858–1938).
10. Chancel panel, Christ in the
Temple, flanked by two
ornamental panels, 1895.
Tiffany Glass and Decorating
Company. Glass mosaic. First
Presbyterian Church (now
United Presbyterian Church),
Binghamton, New York.
11. Interior of St. Paul’s
Episcopal Church, Troy,
New York, 1891–1893.
Tiffany Glass Company or
Tiffany Glass and
Decorating Company,
designed by Jacob
Adolphus Holzer
(American, b.
Switzerland, 1858–1938).
12. Chapel of the Angels
in St. Michael’s
Episcopal Church,
New York, New York,
1920. Tiffany Studios.
13. Interior of Alexander
Hall, Princeton
University,
Princeton, New
Jersey, 1896–1897.
Tiffany Glass and
Decorating
Company, designed
by Jacob Adolphus
Holzer (American, b.
Switzerland, 1858–
1938).
14. The Dream Garden, 1916. Tiffany Studios. Glass mosaic. Curtis Publishing Company Building (now The Curtis Center & Dream Garden; mural in the collection of Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts
(2001.15, partial bequest of John W. Merriam; partial purchase with funds provided by a grant from The Pew Charitable Trusts; partial gift of Bryn Mawr College, The University of the Arts, and
The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
15. Interior of Marquette Building,
Chicago, Illinois, 1895. Tiffany
Glass and Decorating Company,
designed by Jacob Adolphus Holzer
(American, b. Switzerland, 1858–
1938).
16. Interior of Chicago
Public Library (now
Chicago Cultural Center),
Chicago, Illinois, 1897.
Tiffany Glass and
Decorating Company,
designed by Charles
Allerton Coolidge
(American, 1858–1936),
color scheme by Jacob
Adolphus Holzer
(American, b.
Switzerland, 1858–
1938).
17. Barrel-vaulted ceiling
with mosaic decoration,
1907. Tiffany Studios.
Glass mosaic with glass
jewels. Marshall Field &
Company (now Macy’s),
Chicago, Illinois.
18. First Independent
Church of Baltimore
(now First Unitarian
Church), Baltimore,
Maryland, 1897. Tiffany
Glass and Decorating
Company
