Descripción
Steuben Heart shaped Double Candlestick. 8.5" tall x 8" wide, substantial and
heavy top quality American art glass. No damage or issues, slightest shelf wear
on base. Signed bottom center shown in last pic.
Steuben Glass is an American art glass manufacturer, founded in the summer of
1903 by Frederick Carder and Thomas G. Hawkes in Corning, New York, which is
in Steuben County, from which the company name was derived. Hawkes was the owner
of the largest cut glass firm then operating in Corning. Carder was an
Englishman (born September 18, 1863) who had many years' experience designing
glass for Stevens & Williams in England. Hawkes purchased the glass blanks for
his cutting shop from many sources and eventually wanted to start a factory to
make the blanks himself. Hawkes convinced Carder to come to Corning and manage
such a factory. Carder, who had been passed over for promotion at Stevens and
Williams, consented to do so. In 1918, Steuben was acquired by Corning Glass
Works and became the Steuben Division. In July 2008, Steuben was sold by Corning
Incorporated for an undisclosed price to Schottenstein Stores,[2] which also
owns 51% of Retail Ventures, a holding company for DSW, Filene's Basement, and
formerly Value City Department Stores; Value City Furniture, which changed its
name to American Signature Furniture; 15% of American Eagle Outfitters, retail
liquidator SB Capital Group, some 50 shopping centers, and 5 factories producing
its shoes, furniture and crystal. On September 15, 2011, Schottenstein announced
it was shutting down Steuben's Corning factory and Manhattan store, ending the
company's 108-year history. Soon after, Corning Incorporated repurchased the
Steuben brand. In early 2014, The Corning Museum of Glass announced that it
would work with independent contractors to reproduce Steuben using a new,
lead-free formula and their classic leaded crystal. Carder period
(1903-1932)[edit] Steuben Glass Works started operation in October 1903. Carder
produced blanks for Hawkes and also began producing cut glass himself. Carder's
great love was colored glass and had been instrumental in the reintroduction of
colored glass while at Stevens and Williams. When Steuben's success at producing
blanks for Hawkes became assured, Carder began to experiment with colored glass
and continued experiments that were started in England. He soon perfected Gold
Aurene which was similar to iridescent art glass that was being produced
by Tiffany and others. Gold Aurene was followed by a wide range of colored art
glass that eventually was produced in more than 7,000 shapes and 140 colors.
These are a pair of handblown Steuben gold Aurene glass candlesticks designed by
Frederick Carder for the Steuben Glass Works, ca. 1913. (From a private
collection in Manhattan, New York.)Steuben Glass Works continued to produce
glass of all sorts until World War I. At that time war time restrictions made it
impossible for Steuben to acquire the materials needed to continue manufacture.
The company was subsequently sold to Corning Glass Works and became the Steuben
Division. Carder continued as Division manager without any real change in the
company's operation except that he now had reporting responsibilities to Corning
Glass Works' management. Corning's management tried, mostly unsuccessfully, to
limit the articles that Steuben made to only the most popular. Production
continued until about 1932. In 1932, there was a major change in Steuben
management. The nationwide depression had limited the sale of Steuben and there
was a lessening of public interest in colored glass. In February 1932, John
MacKay was appointed to Carder's position. Carder became Art Director for
Corning Glass Works. Steuben then produced primarily colorless art glass.
Steuben still produced colored art glass, but mostly to fill special orders. A
few new colors were added after Carder transitioned into his new role with
Corning Glass Works, but the last known sale for colored art glass by Steuben
was in 1943. Houghton period (1933–2012) An example of Steuben Glass design
during the Houghton era is the Balustrade Candlestick set, which mimics a
classical balustrade. Of special note is the hallmark of the perfectly formed
tear drop air bubble suspended in the design.Corning Glass Works
appointed Arthur A. Houghton Jr. as President in 1933, and under his leadership
Steuben changed artistic direction toward more modern forms. Using a newly
formulated clear glass developed by Corning (referred to as 10M) which had a
very high refraction index, Steuben designers developed beautiful, fluid
designs. Pieces such as Gazelle Bowl, designed by Sidney Waugh incorporated Art
Deco and modernist themes into glass. The themes during this period included
"balustrade" designs for water goblets and candlesticks, footed bowls and
serving pieces. Decorative forms included wildlife pieces representing owls,
penguins and other birds in smooth stylistic forms. Some pieces, such as the
Ram's Head Candy Dish, playfully included clean lines crowned by an ornate
design (a ram's head, complete with a ruff) on the lid as an homage to its
classic earlier pieces. The company also entered into the field of larger show
and presentation pieces celebrating various scenes (such as its cut-away design
featuring an Eskimo ice fisherman above the ice, and the fish below, or the
Cathedral Window design) and elements that incorporated etchings. In some cases
sterling silver or gold plating were used on metal finish elements such as the
golden "fly" atop the nose of a rainbow trout. Each piece is signed simply with
"Steuben" on the underside of the object. Toward the 1990s, the company also
began production of small objects—"hand coolers"—in various animal shapes. Items
from this period were also noted for their careful and elegant packaging. Before
boxing, each Steuben piece was placed in a silver-gray flannel bag (stitched
with the Steuben name), and then placed in a presentation box.
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