|
Click on the
image to enlarge
 Lot 1
Antique Russian petite floral plaque paperweight,
with twelve three-dimensional flowers in cranberry, cobalt blue,
black-cherry, and sky blue, twelve green leaves, and three stems,
all tied with a black-cherry colored ribbon. This is a rare example
of only eleven known of this style of Russian lampwork plaques
from the late nineteenth century. The back of the weight is frosted,
and the piece is faceted around the edges. There are numerous,
differently shaped petals and prominent multi-component stamens
(rather than millefiori centers in the French manner). The flowers
could be dahlias, or being small, they are likely clematis. The
oblong leaves, seem to weave in and out behind the flowers, suggesting
they are climbing up alongside each other, as on a trellis. Some
blooms appear new and not quite open, while others are fully
on display, especially the dark, nearly black blossoms. The petals
and stamen are completely upright, not pressed down. The glassmaker
allowed for a roomy encasement around the delicate pieces, and
kept them intact throughout. This was obviously a special piece
of glass art, perhaps a commissioned work for a child, whose
parent was influential. The plaque is diminutive and pretty;
and in keeping with the symbolism of clematis flowers, it has
an intellectual aesthetic. It is the work of a subtle mind, not
an ostentatious personality.
While glass historians have previously attributed these multiple
flower bouquets as likely American works from the Mount Washington
factory, Dwight Lanmon, former director of the Winterthur Museum
and the Corning Museum, found physical evidence to advance the
theory these lampwork floral compositions are actually Russian
in origin. Lanmon discovered fragments of paperweights containing
the same style of glasswork in the archives of the Imperial Glass
Factory and the Hermitage located in St. Petersburg. Yet, nearly
a decade later after those discoveries, little is known as to
the factory or glass artists that produced these extraordinary,
abundantly floral paperweights.
Interestingly,there was a ban on the importation of foreign
glass into Russia in the early nineteenth century, at which time
many glasshouses came into being; the notable Dyat'kovo Crystal
Works, in particular, is recognized for its fine examples of
crystal. Decorative Russian glassware, water sets and candlesticks
from that period are vigorously collected, but unlike their European
and American glass factory counterparts with the spotlighted
names of Gridel or Lutz, the Russian artisans seemed to be an
anonymous force of designers. (See, The Malstov Dynasty of Russia,
Annual Bulletin of the PCA, 1995; see also, p 154, Objects of
Fantasy: Glass Inclusions of the Nineteenth Century.) And while
it seems obvious that European style permeated boundaries and
influenced artists (in a trickle-down manner, from wealthy, traveled
nobles to the lesser strata), so it seems during the classic
period of the paperweights, Russian glassmakers were likely creating
in a cultural vacuum. So, what we face now is barely a handful
of glass paperweights, that have traveled through many hands,
from whose hands who crafted them… we cannot put a finger
on. Minor chips along the bevels, and flakes of white glass around
the lampwork.
"It will presumably be some time before a comprehensive
survey of Russian lampwork is available. Nevertheless these paperweights
rank among the most beautiful and most sophisticated in the genre."
-Paperweights: Collection Friedrich Bader, Wiener Kunst Auktionen.
(See, Changing Attributions of Antique Paperweights, Annual Bulletin
of the PCA, 1991; see also, Russia-The Paradise of the Paperweight,
Annual Bulletin of the PCA, 1992.)
Length 4"; Width 2 1/2"; Depth 1 3/8". $30,000-50,000 |