Glass Lighting – The World of Chandeliers and Lamps
August 21, 2011 in Collecting and Buying
Glass is a charming material to create lighting with; it reflects light in such a way that it enhances the brilliance of light and sparkles to give the room a warm, grandiose atmosphere. Here, some types of lighting using glass are listed.
- Glass Candlesticks
These were produced in England, Venice, Germany, France, and Spain from 1600s onwards. Only later would they be produced in Ireland and US. Often their design was modeled after their metal predecessors. They would have a nozzle or socket, a tall shaft, a food, and grease pan. Smaller candlesticks were called taper sticks.
- Glass Candelabra
Branched candle holders for table use, these would hold two or more candles. Their design was often lavish with decorations. Especially elaborate were the candelabra produced in French factories in the 19th century. At the time, they were often meant for the wealthy.
- Glass Wall Lights and Sconces
Venetian wall lights are known as the most elaborate. They were made since the 1600s and had one or more branches for holding candles. Both clear and colored glass was used, together with metal, gilt wood, or ceramic. On the other hand, English wall lights are more restrained. The Art Nouveau and Art Deco periods saw another burst of creativity in making wall lights.
- Glass Chandeliers
Glass chandeliers were made in Venice since the 18th century, and also in other European countries. Numerous arms project from a central column. The finest Venetian examples used both clear and colored glass, decorated with flowers, leaves, and fruits.
English glass chandeliers were plainer until 1745, when they became increasingly elaborate. They followed rococo, then neo-classical styles, with sophisticated cutting. By 1800, the decorations were so profuse that the structure of the chandelier, such as the shaft and the branches, were almost obscured. In the Regency period, icicle drop styles that hung like curtains and created a cascading effect were popular.
Germany and Bohemia had a large export trade of chandeliers, and still have even to this day. Spain produced fine examples in La Granja de San Ildefonso prior to the end of the royal patronage.
Art Nouveau chandeliers introduced new styles from 1890, with more colors and motifs. Galle, Daum, Tiffany, and Lalique were some famous artists.
- Glass Lanterns and Lamps
The oldest glass lanterns survive from the 13thand 14th centuries from the Near East, particularly Syria. These lanterns were used in mosques and were extravagantly enameled and gilded. Later they were imitated in Venice in the 15th and 16th centuries. Lanterns were also common in England, Germany, and Bohemia.
From the 1600s, glass table lamps were popular. Spain had free blown oil lamps, as England did. Many were made of unrefined green glass and were undecorated. In 1784, the Argand lamp was developed. In this type of lamps, glass tube and tubular wick permitted better air flow for feeding the flame. Hence, these lamps were much brighter. Advances in the quality and refinement of oil was also essential in creating better lamps.
Then, electricity appeared. This, combined with Art Nouveau, created a flourish in lamp design. Glass and metal was used together to form new shapes. Tiffany, Galle, Daum, Müller, and Loetz were important figures in this development. In the 1920s and 1930s, Art Deco styles by Lalique introduced lamps that looked like giant perfume bottles.
