Ashtray
Medium
glasswares
Classification
glasswares
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Bequest of Joseph L. Morris
Accession Number
1966-55-2
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
Louis Comfort Tiffany’s *Ashtray* (ca. 1900) exemplifies the artist’s lifelong fascination with transforming humble, everyday objects into works of art. An American designer celebrated for his leadership in the Art Nouveau movement, Tiffany elevated glass from functional material to luminous sculpture. This small glassware piece, now part of the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s collection, reflects the early twentieth-century belief that beauty should infuse even the most ordinary household items. Tiffany’s innovative glass techniques, including his signature Favrile process, allowed light t...