New Exhibition Opening at the Legion of Honor Museum
The 1900 World's Fair in Paris was the stage for the one of the greatest rivalries in the history of decorative arts, a showdown between Peter Carl Faberge, Louis Comfort Tiffany, and Rene Lalique, for preeminence in the world of luxury goods. The California Palace of the Legion of Honor Museum is bringing this rivalry back in an exhibition opening February 7, 2009 called 'Artistic Luxury: Faberge, Tiffany, Lalique.' This exhibit will reunite some of the most elaborate designs produced for the Paris World's Fair for the first time since the turn of the century.The exhibit focuses on the glittering objects crafted out of gold, silver, and precious gems reflecting the prevailing styles of the time, the opulent Rococo (historicism) and the exuberant Art Nouveau (modernism). Separate galleries, recreating the ambiance of the Paris World's Fair, are devoted to the designs of each artist along with a handful of pieces by other well known makers of the period.
In addition to 300 works of art, the curators include historical items to provide context for the show. In 1896 the US Supreme Court declared income tax unconstitutional. The result was a twenty year period of wealth redistribution which allowed corporations and citizens to spend untold amounts of money on luxury goods. The development, design and marketing of these luxury brands is traced through the outbreak of World War I in the exhibit.
Lalique is a particularly interesting artist; he was controversial in his lifetime because he relegated gold, silver, and gems to supporting roles in his work. He used carved bone and ivory, which were considered to common for jewelry at that time, to make his hair combs. Lalique also used diamond chips, considered waste product from diamond cutting, to create sparkling textures.
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