Lalique Art Nouveau

Lalique Cabochon Ring

Lalique has certainly made a huge impresssion with the Lalique Cabochon rings which have been popular for over 50 years and are still as popular today as they ever were

Cabochon Ring

The lalique crystal cabochon ring is now available in the following colours :
Amber
Lilac
Ocean Blue
Clear
Green
Violet
Black
Rose
Fuschia
Red
Mauve
Opale

The Hot selling Lalique Rings now include the Lalique Ice Light Ring which looks to be on every fashionable womans wants list.

There is currently a waitng list for the Ice Light Ring.
The other real superb ring from Lalique is the Fleur de Ronces ring which is absolutely gorgeous.
This is also available in Black.
Another stunning ring is the Lalique Art Deco Ring with a definite Art Deco feel to it redolent of a 1930s New York Hotel - elegant and not fussy with graceful lines,
The Lalique Mossi Ring has three rows of cabochons on a wide band
Masque de Femme is the famous ring with the mysterious and sensual head of a lady and this has proved popular.
A range of Cabochons with a 3 microsn sering Silver Sssetting enhances this already popular range.
The Lalique Ronces Ring is available in a gold plated or Sterling Silver ring with Lalique Crystal small cabochon features.

LALIQUE NERITA Red Crystal Shell Pendant Necklace NIB

US $49.99

22d 2h 33m

New LALIQUE Crystal Sterling Silver Brooch Retails $460

0 Bid

US $104.00

1d 8h 22m

LALIQUE CABOCHON RING AMBER COLOR SZ 8 NIB

US $109.99

29d 23h 10m

$388 LALIQUE PINK Cabochon Crystal T50 Ring US 5 NIB

US $86.00

29d 11h 10m

$333 LALIQUE OPAL Crystal Serpent Cabochon Ring 7 NIB

US $85.00

29d 11h 8m

LALIQUE CABOCHON RING ANTINEA GREEN RING SZ 6 NIB

US $109.99

28d 18h 26m

Irradiated Glass

Irradiated Glass.

Some Lalique Glass varies in value according to color.
Some collectors are prepared to pay more for rare differences in color .
These effects were due to differences in additives originally designed to enhance and clarify glassware.

Up until 1930 some glassmakers used Manganese to remove color defects from pressed glass.
This worked well but eventually changed the basic color of the glass when it was exposed to sunlight for a long time.
Arsenic was also used in glassmaking and the color changed to yellow (remember the very old headlamps on cars ?)

It is changes like these that appeal -however there are now services on the internet that will take a not so scarce item and irradiate it (for a fee) and it then morphs into a more desirable color.

Collectors obviously hate this. There are services that will examine glass and report of the likelyhood of irradiation but these are intrusive examination (may require a tiny chip of glass to be removed) and charge several hundred dollars.

A Quick guide is that the most popular color at the moment seems to be purple.
It is very easy to make the piece go too purple in an irradiation process and you may wishe to make enquiries about pieces that look too dark !
If you are purchasing by auction, it is very easy to check the vendors previously sold items -
For instance,if they have recently sold four or five Bacchantes Purple vases then that might be a clue for you not to buy !

Most glassware has NOT been irradiated and it is really only something you should worry about with very expensive pieces.
(If you are buying an expensive piece then please ask for a certificate of authenticity anyway )

Tahitian Noni Juice 996 Pure Blend Certified Organic

US $17.91

22d 3h 54m

Proffesional Prismatic Prism Spectroscope Gem Tool

US $66.00

19d 23h

Red Blue Hydroponic LED Panel Grow Light 100 Watt 110 V

0 Bid

US $279.00

8h 30m

THE ULTIMATE NUCLEAR EBOOK COLLECTION 500 ON DVD DISK

0 Bid

US $7.99

9h 22m

HVAC LEAK DETECTOR SAFETY GLASSES UV LED BLACK LIGHT

US $15.99

12d 5h 47m

A C Fluid Gas Leak Detector 12 LED UV Safety Glasses

US $15.99

14d 21h 37m

Car Mascots - real or fake ?

Car Mascots by Rene Lalique - or are they ?
.Originally these were designed by Rene lalique in both the Art Nouveau and Art Deco Styles but read on for a suprise...
The most famous is the Victoire but there are Czech Copies of this car mascot from the original moulds around.The originals are much crisper and copy Lalique Car Mascots are often from moulds acquired during WWII and used in Czech factories to produce realistic copies.
One of the ways to tell a fake is the glass itself - modern copies have really perfect glass without inclusions = and they show no signs of wear at all - real car mascots were almost always used rather than kept in boxes and the bases underneath will always show signs of wear and attachment. Chips are commonplace on real mascots and should have been caused by flying chips.
Beware of too perfect examples as these are almost always Czech or Tawanese copies.

VICTOIRE

The Most Faked and the most desirable car mascot !

The most Expensive Car Mascot (and the most faked !)

Lalique was really famous for his Car Hood Mascots

Car Mascots by Rene Lalique.

These were designed by Rene lalique in both the Art Nouveau and Art Deco Styles.
The most famous is the Victoire but there are Czech Copies of this car mascot from the original moulds around.The originals are much crisper and are engraved signatures. The copies are with acid etched signatures.

These were either of Glass or a mixture of Bronze and Glass.
Some have been copied by other manufacturers so please ensure the Lalique Signature is on the piece.

Especially popular with collectors are the range of semi-draped or nude ladies and the Eagle Head mascots.

The VICTOIRE ( a ladies head with Flying hair streaming back) is the most sought after car mascot.

Things to look out for - chips and scratches on the glass are not unusual and are a sign sometimes of authenticity as it shows the piece probably was used on a car.
Some pieces have the bronze base removed and have been used as rather classy paperweights - they are more valuable with the base.
Some earlier models were actually also produced as paperweights too.

One of the earliest Car Mascots was Grand Libellule (a dragonfly).
Some but not all were also fitted with a light bulb in the base to make them glow at night. These look gorgeous.Some had a filter compartment so that you could change the colour that the mascot glowed.

Car mascots in coloured glass are fairly rare.
Many were actually produced as paperweights and bookends.
There was a larger market for bookends and paperweights at the time so it was only reasonable to expect Lalique to fill the deamand.

Art Nouveau Fragments of Design

Art Nouveau is more than just a style.
Translated from French to English it means New Art .
In fact that is what the Art Nouveau movement was all about.
Unlike some styles, Art nouveau incorporated glass,silver,
stained glass,posters,furniture,jewellery,Art,Metalwork,Pottery ,bronze and other sculpture and textiles.

It was more a way of thinking and designing than slavish copies of a common theme.
naturalistic themes were common but even these were transformed into
dream-like pieces with an air of fantasy and other-worldliness.
Some of the motive forces behind the movement were the leaders in their fields.
Alphonse Mucha for his Art and Posters, Klimt for his gorgeously rich
works of Art, Rene Lalique for his fantastical jewelry and exquisite glassware.
All of these are now household names and highly collectable.
Potters joined in with amazing designs as did silversmiths with curved and flowing jewelry.
RIng,Necklaces and bracelets in Art Nouveau designs became the highly desired pieces of jewelry
that any fashionable lady of the turn of the 19h Century needed to stay in fashion.
Actresses and Royalty took up the style and this filtered down to almost every European and American woman
The main difference was exactly that the designs were SO very different - very strange
and picking up hints of fairyland,mermaid,niads or nymphs were incorporated.
Before all of theses fields were very traditional and mainly unchanged for many years before.
It was the genius of these designers that altered the perception that everyday objects and Jewels did not have to be exactly as nature designed them.

J G MEAKIN CERAMIC PLATE

0 Bid

US $.37

15m

2 VOLS WILD FOWERS FINE ART NOUVEAU BINDINGS E STEP

1 Bid

US $22.46

15m

Pop Star Britney Spears Autograph Reprint Signed Photo

1 Bid

US $1.48

15m

2 Very Old Glass Table Salts Small Spoons Posh Table

0 Bid

US $5.99

16m

GRENSON ELLAND WINGTIP BROGUES CHESTNUT BROWN UK 12 F

6 Bids

US $59.94

16m

Livre CODE UNIVERSEL des COULEURS SEGUY ART DESSINS

1 Bid

US $9.51

16m

Art Deco Design

Art Deco With Great Style from Lalique.
Art Deco was a new era in design and incorporated recurring geometric designs.
Patterns still included nature themes by Lalique but these were updated to fit into the art deco style.

Some Art Deco designs can still be found and these are strongly geometric in features.

Great examples of Art Deco are the Chrysler Building in New York,
Although Lalique was a strong influence, the art deco movement was lead byHector Guimard, Eugène Grasset, Raoul Lachenal, Paul Follot, Maurice Dufrene, and Emile Decour
They organized the 1925 Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes (International Exposition of Modern Industrial and Decorative Art) in Paris
Art Deco design influences were expressed in the crystalline and faceted forms of decorative Cubism and Futurism.
Ocean liners like the Queen Mary and the Normandie (where Lalique did most of the glass installations) are classic examples of Art Deco.

Artists like Lempicka brought a new vision to art.
There are many examples of Art Deco in Havana Cuba and also in Miami Florida.
Jewelry changed too with platinum and diamonds in common use and the style change to the double clip.

The Art Deco period extended from the mid 1920s to the 1950s but after World War two it was considered a little old fashioned.

Art Nouveau interesting Websites

Interesting Art Nouveau Websites

www.laliqueartnouveau.com (this site !)

www.nga.gov/feature/nouveau/nouveau.shtm
Feature about a great Art Nouveau Exhibition

www.artchive.com/artchive/art+nouveau.html
Website about Art Nouveau plus Klimt,Aubrey Beardsley and Alphonse Mucha

www.artlex.com
Good examples of Art Nouveau

www.artnouveau-net/eu/
An interesting network detailing Art Nouveau in various cities in Europe

www.senses-artnouveau.com
Good catalogue of reprod art nouveau jewellery

www.artnet.com
Excellent section on Lalique plus art of the Art Nouveau period

www.collectorsweekly.com/art-glass/lalique
All about lalique art glass

www.bbc.co.uk/homes/design/period_artnouveau.shtml
BBC Website with good descriptions of Art Nouveau Glass

http://www.cristallalique.com/

The official website of Lalique (you sholuld preferably have a recent version of Flash to see properly)

http://www.vam.ac.uk/

The Victoria and Albert Museum in London which has some excellent Art Nouveau and Lalique information

http://greatfrenchglass.com/blog/tips-from-an-antiques-market

Excellent article on buying glass at an antiques market

http://greatfrenchglass.com/blog/lalique-copies-and-fakes

Article on How to tell Lalique Copies

http://greatfrenchglass.com/blog/oh-oh-chipped-figurines

How to deal with chipped antique glassware ( Sister website - with other famous glassmakers)

Calouste Gulbenkian

Lalique Jewellery .
The best collection of lalique jewellery outside of the Lalique company
Is almost certainly the collection of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation.
This collection includes both the collected pieces and those commissioned by
Calouste Gulbenkian himself.
The museum was given to the people of Portugal as thanks for the kindness they showed to Mr Gulbenkian

A Fascinating man, Calouste Sarkis Gulbenkian was born in Istanbul and made a fortune through development of the Middle East Oil Industry.
Apart from his friendship with Lalique, he was also a close friend of the famous actress Sarah Bernhardt.

Pieces in the Collection that particularly caught my eye were :

A Valkyries Score Cover with a carved ivory Plaque in a frame of patinated silver with
stylised Poppies.This piece was exhibited in the Salon of he Society of French Artists
in 1894 and it really is exquisite.Purchased from the Artist in 1901

The Peacock Pectoral.
A stunning piece of jewellery in Gold Diamonds,Opal and enamel.
This is almost certainly one of the most magnificent pieces of Art Nouveau Jewellery
and it features a lovely peacock with deathers enamelled to show peacock colours and
cabochon opals.his Pectoral is a huge piece and really captures the very essence of the spirit of Art Nouveau.

The Female Face Pendant.
A widely known portrait of a very dreamy lady surmounted by large open poppies in the form of a hood.
The very dreamlike face in Moulded Glass is framed in patinated silver and supports a large Baroque Pearl.
There are definite signs of an inspiration from Renaissance jewellery in this lovely pendant.

Other wonderful pieces in the Calouste Gulbenkiand Foundation incluse
A rather medieval looking Chalice,
A spray of Orchids forming into a diadem,
an incredibly intricate plaque for eagles and pine as a choker,
and a Landscape comb which definitely influenced several othe artists of the time (including Daum and Galle)
It also reflected Rene Laliqes interest in Photography.

To see these and other stunning pieces for yourself,
Please Visit

Museu Calouste Gulbenkian
Address:
Av. de Berna 45A
1067-001 Lisboa Codex
(LISBON PORTGAL)

Here is to be an Art Deco Exhibition in the temporary exhibition gallery
details :
ART DECO
PARIS, 1925
15th October 2009 to- 3rd January 2010
Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation,
Temporary Exhibition Gallery

Tel: 21 7823000
Fax: 21 7823032
Website :

http://www.museu.gulbenkian.pt/museu.asp?lang=en

Oh - sorry - you just missed it !

There is a small selection of Lalique in the Museum D'Orsay but it is fairly small.

Rene Lalique Paris

When I recently visited Paris,i went loking for Lalique Glass.

First stop was the Musee d'Orsay (used to be a railway station)

I was quite disappointed with the Lalique on view - in fact although there were lots of Art Nouveau Glass from Daum and other glassmakers, there was none on display from Lalique .

What was on show was a small selection of Lalique Jewellery and only one of the pieces on view was up to the standard I was expecting.

What a shame ! but not by any means a wasted day as I studied other French glass instead.

I assume that much of the pieces I had seen in the past were on loan to other museums.

I am looking forward to visiting the Lalique new museum at Wingen in Alsace when it opens.

I did find a couple of pieces of glassware though in a fleamarket but much of what is on show in St Oeuen look like fakes !

Lalique at The Met

Rene Lalique Art Nouveau Jewellery at the Metropolitan Museum

Rene Lalique made a beautiful Gold necklace for this second Wife (Augustine-Alice Ledru)
and this necklace is on display at the Metropolitan Museum in New York.
It is a very special large necklace - enamelled with 9 large and 9 small pendants
featuring Siberian Amethysts and Opals from Australia.

This was a very special piece for Rene as he normally made jewellery from semi precious stones instead of the normal precious metals like gold,silver and Platinum.
Rene usually preferred to use ivory and even horn to decorate his pieces although he did favour moonstones and Baroque Pearls
against a background of precious metals.
This piece has repetition of the main motif of a lovely gold lady with swirling hair above two swans on each pendant

It has formed part of a lalique exhibition in a number of countries
Remember that as well as the store inside the Metropolitan Museum, a number of reproductions of special pieces from their collection
in their other shop on the mezzanine of Macy's Store in New York
This necklace can be seen at http://www.metmuseum.org/

Books on Lalique

Lalique Books

Books on Lalique and lalique catalogues including auction catalogues.

If you are a serious collector or dealer ialique then good reference Lalique books and catalogues are really the only way to become a specialist without visiting many museums and collections.

(if you ARE visiting Museums then remember to pick up 2 copies of each guide/catalogue one for yourself and one to resell later !)

Fortunately books on lalique frequently appear here at reasonable prices so that make your choice more simple.

Many Lalique books are in French (that includes the best illustrated ones) so you will benefit more if you have a smattering of French.

laliqueartnouveau.com

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Lalique Cabochon Ring

Irradiated Glass

Car Mascots - real or fake ?

Art Nouveau Fragments of Design

Art Deco Design

Art Nouveau interesting Websites

Calouste Gulbenkian

Rene Lalique Paris

Lalique at The Met

Books on Lalique

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