Stemmed Sherbert Dish

About this artwork

Research in Progress

Art Historical Context

Louis Comfort Tiffany, a leading figure in the American Art Nouveau movement, created this elegant Stemmed Sherbert Dish around 1905. Best known for revolutionizing decorative glass, Tiffany drew inspiration from nature and medieval craftsmanship to produce objects that blurred the line between fine art and functional design. During this period, his studio in New York was at the height of its influence, supplying luxurious glassware to wealthy collectors and helping define the era’s taste for organic forms and luminous surfaces. Crafted in glass, the dish showcases Tiffany’s pioneering Favrile technique, which produced an iridescent sheen through controlled chemical reactions during firing. Such works elevated everyday items like sherbet dishes into small sculptures of light and color. The piece entered the Smithsonian American Art Museum collection as a gift from Harry Harkness Flagler, reflecting early twentieth-century appreciation for Tiffany’s ability to merge industrial innovation with artistic beauty. Today the work offers visitors a glimpse into the Gilded Age’s fascination with material splendor and the artist’s enduring legacy in American decorative arts.