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Émile Gallé, Napoleon III, a Pair of Enameled Art Glass Cabinet Vases, ca. 1870s
About the Item
Napoleon III Period
Émile Gallé
A Pair of Cabinet Vases
Multi-Color Enamel, Clear Art Glass
Nancy, France
Circa 1870s
DIMENSIONS
Height: 3.57 in Upper diameter: 1.63 in Width: 2,25 in Bottom diameter; 1.63 in
MARKINGS
Both vases are signed in enamel at the base, bearing the mark ‘E. Gallé Nancy.’
ABOUT VASES
“The aim of my work: The study of nature, the love of nature's art, and the need to express what one feels in one's heart.” – Emile Gallé
These exquisite, museum-quality vases are highly collectible and in great demand due to their representation of the very origins of the master’s distinctive oeuvre, tracing back to the 1870s. At that time, French applied arts were marked by the extraordinary Napoleon III style, which blended vibrant polychrome hues, lacquered surfaces, and intricate painting techniques. This style drew inspiration from Renaissance ideals of beauty, Baroque gilding, Neoclassical lines, and the sensuality of Rococo. This particular pair of cabinet vases uniquely amalgamates several prevailing artistic styles of the period, including Impressionism, Trompe-l'œil, Realism, and Romanticism. Each vase is adorned with multi-colored enamel paintings depicting fantastical designs, featuring insects fluttering among an array of exotic grasses and flowers. Both vases are further embellished with exquisite applied glass sea shells, a Rococo-style handles on their sides. Despite their identical classical form, the paintings on each vase differ significantly, yet together they form a surprisingly harmonious composition.
ABOUT ARTIST
Émile Gallé Gallé (French, 1846 – 1904)
Born on May 4, 1846 in Nancy, France, Émile Gallé mile Gallé seemed destined for a career in glassmaking. Nancy was well-established for its glass artistry, and his father, Charles Gallé was an established faïence (ceramic) and glassmaker with his own successful manufactory, the Maison Gallé-Reinemer. It would be here under the guidance of his father that the young Emile began to learn the art of glassmaking while simultaneously indulging his academic interests in philosophy, botany and chemistry. In 1867, Gallé joined his father working full-time at the Maison.
Gallé's glasswork, even at its earliest stages, was heavily influenced by nature, with his very first pieces incorporating enameled floral motifs painted upon clear glass. He was an avid botanist his entire life, collecting plants, flowers, and insects from which to study and draw inspiration. He was even elected Secretary-General for Nancy's Société centrale d'horticulture.
Gallé traveled throughout Europe studying works at museums and private institutions, gaining insight from ancient glass antiquities to Japonesque masterpieces, and everything in between. It would be Gallé’s trip to the British Museum in 1871 that would alter the course of his art career. Enamored by the famed ancient Roman cameo glass artifact known as the Portland Vase, the intrepid artist began experimenting with cameo glass upon his return to Nancy.
His melding of ancient tropes with modern technology led to the evolution of Gallé’s most incredible and distinguishable oeuvre. Color was a dominant force in all his designs. Galle’s method of layering various colors of glass and exposing the base layers via precise acid etching gave birth to some of the French glass master’s most memorable creations. Layering metallic foils between the colored glass prompted the discovery of exceptional highlighting effects that breathed life into Gallé’s naturalistic motifs, and the incorporation of air bubbles into the molten glass added a textural element never before seen in the medium. He even continued in his experimentations with enamel, mixing it with metal oxides to create absolutely breathtaking, glistening effects that were revealed only in the final firing.
Taking all of his revelations into account, Gallé had the ability to create the most picturesque landscapes and give life to any flora or fauna known to man within his majestic glass art. His showing at the 1878 Exhibition Universelle and a decade later at the 1889 Exhibition catapulted Gallé to international fame. His organic, flowing patterns captivated the global audience and effectively gave relevance to the burgeoning Art Nouveau movement.
Along with Louis Majorelle, Auguste and Antonin Daum and other pioneers in Art Nouveau, Gallé founded the ç to expand the scope of the Art Nouveau movement. The institution had the goal of blending artistry with industry from all areas of decorative arts and making arts, or art deco, more accessible for people from all walks of life, not just the elite. Gallé served as the first president of the school until his death in 1904.
Here is a brief timeline of Emile Gallé’s life as it relates to art glass and his achievements in the field.
Most people want to know why Gallé art glass is so much more valuable than almost all other art glass. The short answer is that it is valuable because it is always in high demand. Today we all know that glass can be a form of artistic expression. Back in the 1870s when Gallé got started there was virtually no glass being made just for the sake of art. The “art glass” that was being made was not especially interesting or inventive. Gallé introduced bold colors and subject matters and combined them to make expressive and telling objects of art.
1846 – Émile Gallé mile Gallé is born
1867 – Émile Gallé mile Gallé e starts working for his father’s faience and glass factory
1873 – Gallé started his own glass studio
1877 – Gallé took over his father’s studio
1878 – Gallé won the Grand Prix at the Paris Exhibition
1889 – Gallé displays his glass designs at The Paris International Exposition
1894 – Gallé’s first full production glass factory was established in Nancy, France
1900 – Gallé wins two top awards at The International Exhibition in Paris
1904 – Émile Gallé mile Gallé passes away from Leukemia at 58 years old.
1905 – Émile Gallé Gallé’s wife continues to make art glass but these works are marked with a star after
1908 – Gallé book “Écrits pour l'art” 1884–89 ("Writings on Art 1884–89") is published posthumously.
1919 – Émile Gallé Gallé’s son-in-law, Paul Perdizet, continues glass making under the Gallé name
1936 – All authentic productions of Gallé art glass were discontinued.
- Creator:Émile Gallé (Artist)
- Dimensions:Height: 3.57 in (9.07 cm)Width: 2.25 in (5.72 cm)Depth: 1.63 in (4.15 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 2
- Style:Napoleon III (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:ca. 1870s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. We make our best effort to provide a fair and descriptive condition report. Please examine photos attentively for they are an important part of the description. Send us a message to request more details or discuss price.
- Seller Location:New York, NY
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU2819342892782
Émile Gallé
“Art for art’s sake” was a belief strongly espoused by the celebrated French designer and glassworker Émile Gallé. Through his ethereal glass vases, other vessels and lamps, which he adorned with botanical and religious motifs, Gallé advanced the Art Nouveau ideology and led the modern renaissance of French glass.
Gallé was the son of successful faience and furniture maker Charles Gallé but studied philosophy and botany before coming to glassmaking later in life. The young Gallé’s expertise in botany, however, would inform his design style and become his signature for generations to come.
After learning the art of glassmaking, Gallé went to work at his father’s factory in Nancy. He initially created clear glass objects but later began to experiment with layering deeply colored glass.
While glassmakers on Murano had applied layers of glass and color on decorative objects before Gallé had, he was ever-venturesome in his northeastern France, taking advantage of defects that materialized during his processes and etching in natural forms like insects such as dragonflies, marine life, the sun, vines, fruits and flowers modeled from local specimens.
Gallé is also credited with reviving cameo glass, a glassware style that originated in Rome. He used cabochons, which were applied raised-glass decorations colored with metallic oxides and made to resemble rich jeweling. Gallé's cameo glass vases and vessels were widely popular at the Paris Exhibition of 1878, cementing his position as a talented designer and pioneer.
During the late 19th century, Gallé led breakthroughs in mass production and employed hundreds of artisans in his workshop.
Botany and nature remained great sources of inspiration for the artist's glassmaking — just as they had for other Art Nouveau designers. From approximately 1890 to 1910, the movement’s talented designers produced furniture, glass and architecture in the form of — or adorned with — gently intertwining trees, flowers and vines. But Gallé had many interests, such as Eastern art and ceramics. The Japanese collection he visited at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London (then the South Kensington Museum) during the 1870s had made an impression too.
Breaking free from the rigid Victorian traditions, Gallé infused new life and spirit into the art and design of his time through exquisitely crafted glass vessels and pioneering new glassworking techniques.
Find a collection of Émile Gallé vases and other furniture and decorative objects on 1stDibs.
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