Daffodil Lamp

Object NameLamp

Manufacturer Tiffany Studios (American, 1885 - 1932)

Artist / Maker Clara Driscoll (American, 1861 - 1944)

Datec.1905

MediumGlass and patinated bronze

DimensionsShade: 8 × 20 1/4 in. (20.3 × 51.4 cm) Base: 26 × 9 in. (66 × 22.9 cm)

ClassificationsDecorative Arts, Glass

Credit LineGift of the Helen and Rex Cook Estate. In the Helen and Rex Cook Glass Collection, Brunnier Art Museum, University Museums, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa.

Object numberUM2012.184a-c

Status

Not on view

Collections

CultureAmerican

Label TextFrom the University Museums Collections Handbook, vol. 2, 2025: Louis Comfort Tiffany, the son and heir of Tiffany and Co., was an artist and entrepreneur who elevated the art of stained glass through innovative manufacturing and creativity, along with mosaics, blown glass objects, metalware, and more. As a trained artist with an early business in interior design, Tiffany understood the desires and needs of the wealthy classes. The design and production of lighting with leaded glass shades and custom metal bases began in the late 1890s, exploding in popularity due to the exceptional variety and artistry. His development of opalescent glass with distinctive colorations in the 1880s, combined with his aspiration to reinvent traditional stained glass, played a key role in the success he and his studio ultimately achieved. In 1902, he opened Tiffany Studios, creating a huge range of leaded shades and bases in a myriad of shapes and designs. Tiffany notably employed women as designers for glass lamp shades, the best-known being Clara Driscoll, head of the Women’s Glass Cutting Department. The exceptional beauty of the shades is due to their designs and how these women chose the various pieces and colors of opalescent glass that would be leaded together to form the unique shade. The enormous array of flowers, vegetation, and even insects found in the shades is astonishing, with each shade seemingly glowing from the illumination of the electric bulb. The Daffodil Lamp skillfully represents the ingenuity of the designers and the high quality of Tiffany Studio manufacturing, remaining just as beautiful and intriguing to contemporary viewers.

Markingsstamped on base: LCT C Tiffany Studios New york 25783 stamped on shade: Tiffany Studios New York sticker, SE, IRXxx

Locations