Mediterranean Scene by Louis Comfort Tiffany

Louis Comfort Tiffany 1848-1933 | American Mediterranean Scene Signed L.C.T. lower right Oil on canvas Louis Comfort Tiffany, best known for his phenomenal and revolutionary creations in glass, was one of the great Renaissance men in the history of art and design. Perhaps the most influential arbiter of style in the Art Nouveau era, Tiffany exhibited a multitude of talents as an architect and as a designer of interiors, landscapes, and all of the decorative arts. His first love, however, was painting, and he proved to be as talented and dedicated in this endeavor as in all his other pursuits. Tiffany demonstrates his fascination with diverse locales in this Mediterranean scene, almost certainly a landscape on the Italian Amalfi Coast. The influence of his mentor Samuel Colman, the Hudson River School painter and first president of the American Watercolor Society, is evident in the work's luminous palette of warm ochres, sun-bleached whites and terracotta tones, as well as in Tiffany's sophisticated handling of Mediterranean light as it plays across ancient stone and whitewashed walls. While Tiffany is celebrated for his American landscapes and Orientalist subjects, his European travel paintings like this Mediterranean scene represent a particularly rare and sought-after aspect of his artistic output. By the late 1870s, Tiffany had turned his attention to the decorative arts, beginning his experiments in glass that would make him a legend of his generation. Yet, he never completely gave up his pursuit of painting, revisiting his oils and watercolors throughout his lifetime, and particularly in his later years during his retirement. To find one of his paintings is a rarity; they are highly coveted by both collectors of American art and Tiffany enthusiasts. Late 19th Century Canvas: 13 3/4" high x 15 3/4" wide (34.93 x 40.01 cm) Frame: 19 1/2" high x 21 1/2" wide (49.53 x 54.61 x 3.37 cm) Provenance: Private collection, New York M.S. Rau, New Orleans