George Paulding Farnham (American, 1859 to 1927), Tiffany Designer
George Paulding Farnham studied in the studio of Tiffany’s chief designer, Edward C. Moore, and in 1885 became his assistant. His skill as a designer and sculptor was recognized by Moore and Charles Lewis Tiffany. At the age of 27 he was selected to create the Tiffany jewelry collection that would be sent to Paris for the Exposition Universelle of 1889. Farnham and Tiffany recieved the gold Medal for jewelry. With Moore’s death in 1891, Farnham became Tiffany’s chief designer of both jewelry and the silver collections.
Inspired by Asian, Islamic and American Indian designs, Tiffany & Co. won awards at the World’s Columbian Exposition in 1893. For the Pan-American Exposition, Farnham sought new design inspiration from Viking, Byzantine, and Roman artifacts. Artistic disagreements between Farnham and his new employer, Lewis Comfort Tiffany, began with the death of Charles Louis Tiffany in 1902. In 1908, Farnham left Tiffany & Co. and the creation of jewelry and silver to pursue other interests. One of his best known works is the August Belmont Memorial Cup.
Information courtesy of Freeman’s, November 2009.
By 1900, Paulding Farnham had won for Tiffany & Co. dozens of awards, medals and honors both at home and abroad for his leadership in jewelry design. While Farnham’s original Orchids and Native American and Orientalist work attracted great acclaim, he was also a master of Revival styles. From the time he assumed the role of Tiffany’s chief jewelry designer in 1889, after a relatively brief apprenticeship, Farnham began producing extraordinary work in the Renaissance manner. The gem-encrusted Adams Vase, with its elaborate motifs of figures, plants, and animals, is considered the highest expression of the style ever produced in America. Encouraged by the high praise received for the Adams Vase at the Paris Exposition of 1900, Farnham continued designing jewelry in the Renaissance style for the Pan American, Buffalo, and Louisiana Purchase Expositions of 1901 and 1904.
Information courtesy of Skinner, Inc., March, 2009.