Janet Zapata, The Jewelry and Enamels of Louis Comfort Tiffany, New York, 1993, pp. 49-52 (for related enameled copper vases)
John Loring, Louis Comfort Tiffany at Tiffany & Co., New York, 2002, pp. 100, 115-119 (for related enameled copper vases) and pp. 216-218 (for related glazed earthenware vases)
Martin Eidelberg, Alice Cooney Frelinghuysen, Nancy A. McClelland and Lars Rachen, The Lamps of Louis Comfort Tiffany, New York, 2005, p. 57 (for a watercolor study of hollyhocks)
Marilynn A. Johnson, Louis Comfort Tiffany:  Artist for the Ages, London, 2005, p. 146 (for a related glazed earthenware vase)
Martin Eidelberg, Nina Gray and Margaret K. Hofer, A New Light on Tiffany:  Clara Driscoll and the Tiffany Girls, London, 2007, p. 95 (for the same watercolor study)
Martin Eidelberg, Tiffany Favrile Pottery and the Quest of Beauty, New York, 2010, pp. 20, 29, 31, 34, 39, 53-54 and 93 (for related glazed earthenware vases) and p. 94, no. 220 (for the Hollyhock model in glazed earthenware)

Overall in very good condition. The enamelling displays a highly saturated lustrous surface that imparts the work with vivid hues ranging from brilliant purples and pinks to greens and yellows. The enamelled surfaces throughout with some minor irregularities inherent in the making. The enamel with a few small isolated areas of sensitive restoration only visible under close inspection. At the time of restoration, it appears the enameled surfaces throughout were applied with a sensitive light clear finish. This later finish with a few minute chips and a few scattered pinhead size air bubbles. The patinated copper portion of the vase is exquisitely rendered, displaying a particularly rich and deep green patina with red highlights. The patina with light rubbing and minor surface soiling to the recessed portions of the design consistent with age and gentle handling. There is one small tight vertical hairline crack to one of the unopened patinated copper buds in the upper vase register. With another tight hairline crack in the copper along the outer perimeter of the foot just inside the rolled rim which appears inherent in the production of the vase. The interior with light surface soiling. A superb example displaying an unusual and highly artistic combination of enamelled and patinated copper.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

It was not until 1898 that Louis Comfort Tiffany ventured into creating enamels at the Stourbridge Glass Company facility.  The department was originally set up in a small laboratory at Tiffany’s mansion at 72^nd Street and Madison Avenue, eventually moving to 23^rd Street and then in 1903 to the glass shop at Corona.  The chemist, Dr. Parker McIlhinney, was put in charge of creating the chemicals with Alice Gouvy and Julia Munson helping to work out formulas and designs.

Tiffany’s experimentation with enamel was driven by his desire to capture the essence of color and unusual hues.  Unlike other practitioners of the time, Tiffany preferred copper as the base metal for his enamel pieces because the metal reacted with the enamels to create unpredictable colors.  The flowers on the Hollyhock vase exemplify the range of hues he could achieve.

Tiffany depicted recognizable plants on the surface of those pieces marked SG, indicating it was made at the Stourbridge Glass Company.  He carefully chose the shape of each vessel to conform to the plant on the surface.  The columnal shape of this particular vase lends beautifully and naturally to the shape of the towering hollyhock flower.  Tiffany chose this flower not just for its size but also for its colorations.  The hollyhocks on the vase are enameled in pinks and reds with splashes of blues, much like the palette used in the 1902 watercolor by L.A. Palmié, an emanelist at the firm.

The composition of this vase is grounded in naturalism.  Some flowers rise above others as they would in a garden setting.  Each flower is finely detailed and nuanced, as seen on one example in which the petal of one flower curls over the pistil.  Tiffany even included the schizocarp, a disc divided into sections that contain seeds, among the flowers.  Instead of enameling the entire vessel, Tiffany chose to color the flowers and buds with the stems while the lower register is patinated.  This purposeful choice creates a visual hierarchy, putting greater emphasis on the blossom than on the plant overall and highlighting Tiffany’s skill as a colorist.

JANET ZAPATA, author of The Jewelry and Enamels of Louis Comfort Tiffany (New York:  Harry N. Abrams), 1993