The story of Tiffany Studios is often framed as the vision of one man—Louis Comfort Tiffany. But did you know that behind the firm’s most celebrated stained glass windows and lamps stood an exceptional group of women artists? Known today as the “Tiffany Girls,” these women designers, cutters and color specialists were instrumental in shaping the character of the American decorative arts at the turn of the 19th century.
Keep reading to discover the fascinating history of the Tiffany Girls, who have reshaped our understanding of both Tiffany Studios and the impact of women on 19th-century art.
| The Tiffany Girls on the roof of Tiffany Studios. Circa 1904. Image credit: The Charles Hosmer Morse Museum of American Art. |
Louis Comfort Tiffany and the Women's Glass Cutting Department
When Louis C. Tiffany established the Tiffany Glass Company in New York City in 1885, he envisioned a sweeping enterprise devoted to advancing the artistic potential of glass. Tiffany rejected traditional European methods that relied heavily on painted surface details, instead favoring techniques that relied on the inherent properties of the glass itself—shifts in color, texture, opacity and iridescence—to create his fantastic visions of the natural world.
| Tiffany Studios City in the Sky Window. Circa 1920. M.S. Rau |
In an era when women’s work rarely extended beyond the home, Tiffany believed that this exacting artistic labor was perfectly acceptable for women. The work required precision, delicate handling and color sensitivity that aligned with gender norms of the period. Yet the Tiffany Girls’ decisions and talent and significant contributions ultimately determined the final appearance of Tiffany’s magnificent windows and lamps, putting them in an extraordinary position of professional power for their day.
| Tiffany Studios Nasturtium Lamp (detail). Circa 1900. M.S. Rau |
Not simply cutting glass to fit a pattern, the Tiffany Girls were responsible for the creation of Tiffany’s iconic floral lamps, from inception until final assembly. Beginning with their own sketches and full-scale renderings, the women used watercolor to map a shade’s design onto a plaster model. If approved by Louis Comfort Tiffany, a wooden mold was created, and the Tiffany Girls were responsible for selecting, cutting and wrapping every individual piece of glass in foil to fit the pattern.
Each shard of glass was carefully selected for its visual potential. Color, texture, iridescence and transparency were all crucial considerations for every piece, allowing the women to capture magnificent natural effects in their shades—from dappled light through tree branches to the delicate transformation of a flower’s color throughout its life cycle, as in the Nasturtium lamp above.
Clara Driscoll: Lead Designer and Visionary
At the center of this creative enterprise was Clara Driscoll (1861–1944). Raised in Ohio and educated in design, Driscoll arrived in New York City in search of the few artistic opportunities available to women. She began working for Tiffany in the 1880s, yet she faced restrictions typical of the era. Tiffany Studios enforced a strict marriage policy that required women to resign upon marrying. Driscoll complied, leaving the firm during her marriage from 1889 to 1892, returning only after her husband’s tragic passing.
When she returned in 1892, Tiffany immediately appointed her head of the Women’s Glass Cutting Department, and her talent would take Tiffany Studios to new heights.
| Clara Driscoll, circa 1900. Source. |
Many of the lamps long attributed solely to Louis Comfort Tiffany—such as the Dragonfly, Wisteria and Daffodil models—are today recognized as Driscoll’s designs. These incredible creations reveal her sensitivity to color and organic movement that have become the firm’s most iconic hallmarks. Working closely with Louis Comfort Tiffany himself, Driscoll’s shades are an incredible artistic synthesis of their visionary minds. The Laburnum lamp, for example, was inspired by one of Tiffany’s favorite hanging flowers that he planted extensively across his elaborate gardens at Laurelton Hall—perfectly transformed into an extraordinary symphony of rich color and light in Driscoll’s shade.
| Tiffany Studios Laburnum Lamp. Circa 1900. M.S. Rau (Sold). |
Driscoll’s contributions remained obscured for almost a century, until the early 2000s, when scholars uncovered an extensive collection of her letters. Preserved at the Queens Historical Society, these documents detailed her daily responsibilities and attributed various lamp and window designs to her hand. The letters transformed our understanding of authorship within the studio and confirmed Driscoll as one of the principal designers of Tiffany’s celebrated lamps. They also shed light on other important women designers at the firm, including Agnes Northrop and Julia Munson.
Driscoll’s designs were hailed in her day, with her Dragonfly lamp winning a medal at the 1900 Exposition Universelle. By 1904, she was reported as being among the highest-paid women in America. Today, examples of Driscoll’s lamps appear in major museum collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Cleveland Museum of Art.
Legacy and Recognition
How could such monumental contributions by women have remained anonymous for so long? The answer reflects broader patterns in the history of fine art. Studios of the 19th century often operated under single-author identities, with credit directed toward the lead designer rather than the many hands involved in design and production. Gender expectations further obscured the contributions of women, whose artistic labor was rarely acknowledged publicly.
| Women’s Glass Department, from Art Interchange 33, October 1894. Source. |
With the rediscovery of Driscoll’s correspondence came a wave of museum exhibitions and academic studies that reassessed the Tiffany Girls’ roles and importance to the firm’s output. Curators highlighted the intellectual rigor required for glass selection, elevating the process from decorative craft to an artistic discipline in its own right.
Their story also echoes that of other overlooked women artists throughout art history. Figures such as Lee Krasner—whose contributions to Abstract Expressionism were long overshadowed by her husband, Jackson Pollock—illustrate how many women shaped major artistic movements without receiving due recognition until decades later. Reexamining these histories enriches our understanding of fine art and, importantly, restores voices that shaped its evolution.
Collecting Tiffany Studios Today
As scholarship continues to illuminate the role of the Tiffany Girls, collectors have grown increasingly interested in works by the talented women designers who worked for Louis Comfort Tiffany. Identifying such works involves a combination of stylistic study and documentary research that many museums and scholars have undertaken to attribute designs to their rightful authors.
| Tiffany Studios Dragonfly lamp, attributed to Clara Driscoll. Circa 1900. M.S. Rau (Sold). |
This reassessment has shaped the market. As the role of the Tiffany Girls becomes better understood, collectors and scholars recognize that works shaped by these women carry both artistic and historical significance. In 2023, the Metropolitan Museum of Art announced their important acquisition of a monumental three-part window and highlighted its attribution to Agnes Northrop as central to the purchase. Just one year later, another window designed by Northrop shattered records as the most expensive work by Tiffany Studios ever sold, achieving an astonishing $12.4 million at Sotheby’s.
As the fame of Tiffany Studios endures, collectors and scholars alike recognize that the brilliance of its extraordinary works owes much to a collection of some of the most trailblazing women of the late 19th century. The Tiffany Girls stand as a timeless testament to the essential contributions of women to the history of art and design.
To see more of the wide world of Tiffany, explore the collection of masterworks in our latest exhibition, Treasures of Tiffany: Icons of American Design.
Sources:
Clara Driscoll and the Tiffany Girls, New York Historical Society (2015): https://www.nyhistory.org/blogs/tiffany-girls
Tiffany Studios Designers, The Charles Hosmer Morse Museum of American Art: https://morsemuseum.org/louis-comfort-tiffany/tiffany-studios-designers/
Richard Whiddington, “Tiffany Window Shatters Records as Most Expensive Ever Sold,” Artnet (November 2024): https://news.artnet.com/market/tiffany-record-12-4-million-danner-memorial-window-2572035
The Metropolitan Museum of Art Acquires Monumental Tiffany Window Designed by Agnes Northrop, Press release (December 2023): https://www.metmuseum.org/press-releases/tiffany-windows-2023-news
