The Hidden Architects of Tiffany Lamps: Unveiling the Legacy of the Tiffany Girls

Tiffany lamps are famous for their beautiful stained-glass shades. For a long time, people thought Louis Comfort Tiffany made them all. But now we know that a group of talented women, led by Clara Driscoll, created many of these amazing lamps.

Clara Driscoll joined Tiffany Studios in the late 1880s. She became the head of the Women’s Glass Cutting Department. Her team, known as the Tiffany girls, did most of the work on the lamps. They chose the colored glass pieces and put the shades together. Men only did the soldering part.

Driscoll was very creative. She came up with some of the most loved Tiffany lamp designs, like the Dragonfly and Wisteria lamps. Her ideas and leadership were very important for the success of Tiffany Studios.

For almost 100 years, no one knew about Driscoll and her team’s work. The company’s ads made it seem like Louis Tiffany did everything. It wasn’t fair, but that’s how it was back then.

Things changed in 2005 when someone found letters that Driscoll wrote to her family. These letters showed that she designed many famous Tiffany lamps. For example, she wrote about creating the Dragonfly lamp in the late 1890s. You can see one of the best Dragonfly lamps at the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum.

Now, people are finally learning about Clara Driscoll and the Tiffany girls. Museums are showing their work, and books are being written about them. We now know that these women played a big part in making Tiffany lamps so special.

This story shows us how important it is to look deeper into history. Sometimes, the people who did the most work didn’t get the credit they deserved. By learning about Clara Driscoll and her team, we can better appreciate the true story behind these beautiful lamps.

Sushmita Chowdhary, Staff Reporter.