Flask (Les Ames)
Description
Signed “Gallé”; the mount marked three times with the “tête de Minerve” for French .950 standard silver
Emile Gallé (1846–1904) was a cabinet maker and ceramicist as well as one of the key figures in Art Nouveau studio glass, especially for his cameo glass. This flask is a fine example of his verreries parlantes (speaking pieces), inscribed with quotations from poets, which he made from about 1884 onwards.
The quotation on this flask is from Poèmes philosophiques by Alfred de Vigny (1797–1863):
“L’invisible est réel. Les âmes ont leur monde.” (The invisible is real. Souls have their world.)
According to The Grove Encyclopaedia of Decorative Arts, “two or more fused layers of coloured glass were painted with an acid-resistant material and then immersed in an acid bath. The decoration was revealed in low relief and then carved to highlight the motifs. Gallé experimented with a variety of techniques and with metal foils and coloured oxides for their decorative effects and exploited such imperfections as crazing and air bubbles to create novel and often surreal effects.” All of these features are found in this remarkably concentrated little vessel.
Sir Ratan Tata Art Collection
Collection
European Decorative Art
Artist
Emile Gallé
Object Type
Vase
Material
Cameo glass, silver mounts
Schools/Culture/Period
--
Technique
Cameo glass
Date
c. 1885–90
Location
Nancy, France
Dimension
Height: 19.7 cm