{"product_id":"estatefreshaustincom-2640","title":"1920's French Legras Cameo Art Glass Vase","description":"1920's French Legras Cameo Art Glass Vase. 9\" tall with no cracks, chips, or  restoraitons.\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThe Legras glassworks – ultimately a multi-centred concern employing hundreds of\npeople across several manufacturing centres – produced enough highly-distinctive\npieces to be considered an art-glass movement in its own right.\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIt’s more accurate, of course, to consider the name one of the foremost in the\npanoply of innovative, experimental and overtly artistic producers who\nrevolutionised decorative glassware from the mid 1860's, throughout the fin de\nsiècle, across the duration of the Great War and beyond\nThe founding father of the company, François-Théodore Legras, came from humble\nstock, having be life as a woodsman in the Vosges department south of\nStrasbourg. In 1859, Legras determined that there was potentially more to life\nthan trees and leaves, and secured himself a clerical apprenticeship at the\nglassworks in Clairey, a long-established manufactory producing drinking glasses\nand tableware which – crucially for Legras – included the manufacture of\ncrudely-frosted pieces.\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\nAfter learning his trade for five years, Legras moved to Paris and took a job at\nthe Plaine St Denis factory, securing a senior managerial role by the age of 27.\nHe was director of the works when, underwritten by expat-philanthropist Sir\nRichard Wallace, it was significantly extended and modernised; the duo also took\nover another factory at Pantin, on the northern fringes of the city.\nUnrestrained by the financial strictures of facilities lacking patrons such as\nWallace, Legras was able to encourage an experimental approach to glass\nproduction, harking back to his childhood in the Darney Forests and using opaque\nglass – based on Clairey’s frosted material – as a canvas on which designs could\nbe created. The businesses were also underwritten by the production of\nutilitarian glassware for industry – distilleries and pharmacies – and this\nsecurity gave François-Théodore the freedom to develop his art-glass production\ntechniques. Intricately cut cameo glass pieces, acid-etched and enamelled\nimagery – requiring up to five separate firing processes to achieve the desired\neffect – became the Legras hallmark, with many pieces featuring forested\nlandscapes and the favoured themes of the artistic director - irises, orchids\nand chrysanthemums.\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAdditional members of the Legras family were apprenticed in to the company,\nnotably a nephew – Charles – whose expertise in the chemical treatment of glass\nto produce marbled, opaline surfaces on which designs could be overlayed, was to\nprove a valuable commodity. Charles was ultimately to take over the running of\nthe businesses in 1909, seven years before the death of his uncle. He was able\nto maintain a level of innovation which sustained the company for another decade\n– achieving notable successes in developing synthesised “gemstones” which could\nbe ground up and incorporated in to the glass melt to give an extraordinary\ndepth of colouration which provided the base for the production of striking\ncameo vessels.\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003etw108","brand":"sale - www.estatefreshaustin.com Estate Fresh Austin","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46671613493464,"sku":"11764577377_2D05","price":795.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/6284\/7960\/files\/1920s-french-legras-cameo-art-glass-vaseestate-fresh-austin-478493.png?v=1757826702","url":"https:\/\/estatefreshaustin.com\/it\/products\/estatefreshaustincom-2640","provider":"Estate Fresh Austin","version":"1.0","type":"link"}