10 October 2024
Joy McCall
René Lalique enjoyed significant commercial success in selling glass desk wares.
The items were not particularly necessary in terms of functionality but they were fashionable in the early decades of the 20th century and sold well. Desk architecture is still appreciated today as it displays well and can set the tone of any room.
Here, Head of Sale, Joy McCall explores some of the upcoming desk wares featured in our Thursday 31 October Lalique sale, to be held in London and online.
The use of inkwells can be dated back to Ancient Egypt, however it was not until the 16th Century that they became more elaborate in form and decoration.
Between 1910 and 1927, René Lalique designed seventeen inkwells. Featured in our forthcoming sale is the exceptionally rare Hibou inkwell, A crafted in black glass - only two other known examples exist. Like the Aigle, Pigeons and Souris inkwells, the Hibou inkwell is surmounted with a prominent sculpture feature - an owl - associated with wisdom, maturity and prophetic foresight.
We are also pleased to present the Faunes Caryatides et Masques inkwell, which is not listed in the Lalique catalogue raisonné. The signature indicates it dates from the 1920s, yet the design resembles the heads found on the Faune Brooch, No. 1397 designed in 1912, as well as the Faune Choker, B also designed in 1912. Notably, the Hibou, Trois Papillons, Biches, Aigle, Souris, and Pigeons inkwells were all designed in the same year.
The corners of the inkwell feature faun caryatids, while faun masks adorn the pen-tray base. Its form is similar to that of the Biches inkwell, yet it resembles the Hibou with its architectural-like caryatids. It is possible that this piece was conceived in 1912 but not signed until the 1920s due to the war.
The perfect companions to inkwells are blotters. Blotters came into fashion in the early 1800s, but it wasn’t until 1856 that Joseph Parker & Son in the US first manufactured blotting paper.
During 1920 Lalique created eight blotters all of the same form but decorated differently, either featuring foliage (Grosses Feuillage), fruiting foliage (Mûres Feuillage), or mythical figures (Sirenes). All of the designs feature sweeping curving and sinus lines in keeping with the Art Nouveau style.
We must not overlook the other desk accessories created by Lalique. We are delighted to present an Alaska seal crafted from alexandrite, which exhibits a colour change under varying lighting conditions, changing from pale pink to blue and grey.
Finally, we turn to to paperweights. Often, when people think of paperweights, they think of coloured glass canes, however Lalique crafted animals and other sculptural forms. Lalique's paperweight and car mascot designs are often the same but not all paperweights were used as car mascots or vice versa.
