Glass Types at the Gelman Stained Glass Museum!
Art Nouveau Glass
Art Nouveau Stained Glass is one of the two styles of stained glass windows we house at the museum. Art Nouveau was a popular art movement in the late 19th and early 20th century. Below are a few experimental, new types of glass from that era!
Favrile Glass
Favrile glass is a unique type of glass known for its distinctive iridescent, shimmering surface that beautifully reflects and refracts light. Originally developed and patented by Tiffany Studios, the term “Favrile” referred exclusively to this special glass created by Louis Comfort Tiffany. Today, however, it is often used more broadly to describe glass with similar lustrous, opalescent qualities.
Cats Paw/Hammered Glass
Cats Paw/Hammered Glass is the texture on the glass itself. It could be present on any type of glass, but is most common with Art Nouveau style glass because of its
Opalescent Marbled Glass
Opalescent/Marbled glass, it is commonly described as a “Milky, opaque glass”. It differs significantly from regular glass because the colors you see are embedded within the glass itself, rather than being painted on. It is common within art-nouveau stained glass windows.
Rippled/Feathered Glass
Rippled or feathered glass is similar to drapery glass but features finer, more delicate waves. This technique creates a subtle texture that beautifully mimics the soft flow of feathers or petals, making it ideal for depicting details such as angel wings or floral elements, hence the name “feathered” glass.
Confetti Glass
This fun technique for decorating stained glass windows uses broken pieces of colored stained glass that is embedded within molten glass. It is obvious why it is called confetti glass!
Jeweling
“Jeweling” in stained glass windows is the use of using solid pieces of glass (sometimes shaped like jewels) to further decorate a window. Much like confetti glass, the jewel shapes are embedded into the glass when it is still molten.
Drapery Glass
Drapery Glass is the 3-Dimensional glass that is used mostly for depicting clothing. It is sometimes made by rolling out a maluable large piece of molten glass and manipulated to make ripples.
Plating
Plating is a stained glass art technique achieved by layering different pieces of stained glass to get a 3-Dimensional effect within the art piece. John La Farge ( 1845 - 1910) was the person to first discover this technique.