This Tiffany Studios New York “Drophead Dragonfly” table lamp features a leaded glass shade adorned with dragonflies whose wings shimmer in mint green and amber hues, set against a graduated ground of the same colors. Accentuating the shade are scattered glass jewels in varied tones of green. The shade rests on a telescoping, reticulated “Queen Anne’s Lace” base—named for the delicate wildflower motif that Louis Comfort Tiffany employed across his work in pottery, glass, and jewelry. Tiffany drew inspiration from the École de Nancy’s fascination with umbelliferous plants. Queen Anne’s lace, or wild carrot—an invasive species introduced from Europe—had spread across the fields and riverbanks of the American East Coast. Admired for its visual delicacy yet dismissed by gardeners as a weed, the plant's dual nature embodied the Art Nouveau ideal of the femme fatale– beautiful yet dangerous. Despite their weedy classification, members of the Umbelliferae family were revered and widely featured in the decorative arts of the era.

This monumental enameled glass vase by Jean Rouppert for Établissements Gallé. Designed in 1919, the vase depicts a three-toed dragon in tones of teal, black, white, and yellow, captured in mid-flight. The design draws upon a Renaissance prototype popularized by Paolo Uccello, characterized by concentric circular scales derived from heraldic stylization and recalling the osteoderms of a crocodile’s back.
The dragon is enlivened with incisive details—molar-like teeth, a forked tongue, gill-like facial appendages, and banded horns—while thin applications of white enamel create the illusion of translucent wings. A brunaille rendering of the body against the ground enhances depth and modeling, lending the creature a sculptural presence.
The background, conceived in a palette evocative of ink on raw silk, pays homage to the Japanese kakemono (hanging scroll), whose compositional restraint and tonal subtlety profoundly influenced Galle’s designers. The vase’s body shifts from transparency at the upper register to increasing opacity toward the base, forming a horizontal gradient that suggests sky, horizon, and earth. A lower border of teal anthemia imparts a classical accent, while an applied ring foot provides an architectural conclusion to the form.

This Émile Gallé étagère exemplifies refined Art Nouveau design with finely carved, nature-inspired ornament. A crest rail adorned with dragonflies frames the mirror, which is flanked by raised side platforms with integrated drawers for discreet storage of personal accessories. The base is formed as a two-tiered demilune, its soft, semicircular outline enhancing the piece’s fluid silhouette. The top front and two drawers are inlaid with marquetry depicting dragonflies before a setting sun, while the lower tier and reverse are decorated with Japanese irises. It stands on three elegant cabriole legs, their S-curved forms echoing organic movement. The front leg is distinguished by a sculptural dragonfly caryatid, transforming a structural support into an expressive ornamental feature and highlighting Gallé’s integration of craftsmanship and nature.