Tiffany Studios New York "Eight-Light" Lily Tree Table Lamp

The Lily Tree by Louis Comfort Tiffany is a rare variation of the lily lamp, inspired by the form of an espaliered tree—an ancient horticultural practice dating back to Egypt and Rome and widely used in medieval Europe to train fruit trees along monastery and castle walls. Eight golden Favrile glass blossoms emerge from patinated bronze branches. Unlike other Tiffany lily lamps, the flowers turn upward, creating a radiant, tree-of-life–like effect. This upward reach suggests spiritual ascent and renewal, embodying nature’s vitality in sculptural form. Both technically and symbolically, the work stands among Tiffany’s most imaginative expressions of the union between art, light, and living growth
Category: Lily New Acquisitions Our Rarest Finds Table Lamps Tiffany Lamps Tiffany Studios New York
Product Details

Item #: YL-22188
Artist: Tiffany Studios New York
Country: United States
Circa: 1910
Dimensions: 27" height, 10" width, 7" depth.
Materials: Favrile Glass, Bronze
Shade Signed: three shades signed "L.C.T.", and five signed "L.C.T. Favrile"
Base Signed: Tiffany Studios New York
Literature: R. Koch, Louis C. Tiffany's Glass, Bronzes, Lamps: A Complete Collector's Guide, New York, 1971, p. 137, no. 223 (for a related example). R. Koch, Louis C. Tiffany's Art Glass, New York, 1977, n.p., no. 51 (for a related example). A. Duncan, Tiffany at Auction, New York, 1981, p. 293, no. 925 (for a related example). R. Koch, Louis C. Tiffany: The Collected Works of Robert Koch, Atglen, 2001, p. 283 (for a related example). A. Duncan, Tiffany Lamps and Metalware, Suffolk, 2019, p. 65, no. 216 (present lot illustrated).
 

Item #: YL-22188
Artist: Tiffany Studios New York
Country: United States
Circa: 1910
Dimensions: 27" height, 10" width, 7" depth.
Materials: Favrile Glass, Bronze
Shade Signed: three shades signed "L.C.T.", and five signed "L.C.T. Favrile"
Base Signed: Tiffany Studios New York
Literature: R. Koch, Louis C. Tiffany's Glass, Bronzes, Lamps: A Complete Collector's Guide, New York, 1971, p. 137, no. 223 (for a related example). R. Koch, Louis C. Tiffany's Art Glass, New York, 1977, n.p., no. 51 (for a related example). A. Duncan, Tiffany at Auction, New York, 1981, p. 293, no. 925 (for a related example). R. Koch, Louis C. Tiffany: The Collected Works of Robert Koch, Atglen, 2001, p. 283 (for a related example). A. Duncan, Tiffany Lamps and Metalware, Suffolk, 2019, p. 65, no. 216 (present lot illustrated).
 

Curator's Notes
These favrile glass shades take the form of morning glories. Inspired by Japanese woodblock prints, Tiffany created numerous watercolor paintings of morning glories, entranced by their polychromatic brilliance and trumpet-like shape. The morning glory, or asagao, was beloved by the Japanese as the commoner's flower. The asagao blooms at dawn before the sun rises, and consequently, asagao lovers have to rise early to appreciate the blossoms. Like the morning glory rises to the sun, so do these sconces come alive with the addition of light.
These favrile glass shades take the form of morning glories. Inspired by Japanese woodblock prints, Tiffany created numerous watercolor paintings of morning glories, entranced by their polychromatic brilliance and trumpet-like shape. The morning glory, or asagao, was beloved by the Japanese as the commoner's flower. The asagao blooms at dawn before the sun rises, and consequently, asagao lovers have to rise early to appreciate the blossoms. Like the morning glory rises to the sun, so do these sconces come alive with the addition of light.
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