Glass Message Board
Glass Identification - Post here for all ID requests => Glass => Topic started by: Glasshound on March 05, 2007, 12:47:17 AM
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This vase looks French Deco to me..I don't recognize the signature? any guesses?
thx!
[Mod: direct links no longer available - but see added posts below, August 2016.]
/Blair
http://img172.imageshack.us/img172/2276/a1awo2.jpg
http://img341.imageshack.us/img341/4520/a1bpl3.jpg
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Quenoil
Paris 1930-1935
probably a company that brought in blanks and enamelled them -maybe even just one shop
not much is known about them
regards
Mike
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Hey Mike,
You sure it's 'Quenoil'?...I definitely see a 'V' in the signature..
thx..
/Blair
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I personally think it is 'Quenvit, P' - 'Signature attributed to Legras c1920-25 on enamelled art glass; stylistic similarities with Goupy and Delvaux' (Ivo Haanstra 2001 Millers Glass Fact File a-z)
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Thanx Steven! I thing your "bang on" with that one...I need to dig out Ivo's book more often! ;D
/Blair
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Glassmarken Lexikon can be wrong but I don't think so this time - they have exactly your signature as Quenoil! -and yes they say it reads like Quenvil (at which point my German fails)
We're probably talking about the same signature but neither Lexicon nor interestingly 'Legras Verrier' think its anything to do with Legras -there were loads of enamelling establisments at the time copying Legras, etc etc
I guess it would be sad if all books agreed.
cheers
Mike
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When books disagree - look at more books
In Cappra (Le Genie Verrier de l'europe) it says
' L'identite de cette signature est a rapprocher de Legras' -and the exact translation is lost on me. -PLEASE can anyone help?
He then goes on to say an example of the work is the same 'body' as a Legras vase.
It is only supposition on my part ('cus my French and German are'nt quite good enough) but knowing a bit about other french enamellers of the period - Quenoil/Quenvit seems at last to have used Legras blanks for their enamelling -or to be more mysterious maybe both enamelled the blanks of the same third party manufacturer.
oh what fun
Mike
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Several posts on this subject, so I thought I just pick one.
Quenvit, Quenoil ... several suggestions from different books etc... but I thought i'll share something that has been dug up on a different forum.
As mentioned earlier on, Quenvit was suggested bu Cappa. What I don't like about some parts of his books, is that he makes a very vague suggestion and then in the re-edition, he refers to himself in the earlier edition and makes the suggestion more or less a fact. He also does this with Verlux and Etling.
In 1991 he says about Quenvit "this unknown signature could probably be connected to Legras, as it, the signature, could be one of many variations". The illustrated vase is therefor attributed to Legras, but signed Quenvit.
In 1997 he says that the signature Quenvit can be linked to Legras because a vase looks very much like one from Legras. Ref edition Cappa 1991.
Hartmann says in the Glasmarken Lexicon, that it is a signature, that is often mistaken for Quenvit or Quenvil, but should be read as Quenoil. His reference comes from the 1930 Inventory of Ceramics and Glass manufacturers in France. The address of the mentioned company was 47, Rue d'Hauteville in Paris.
Unfortunately no Quenoil was ever registered there or ever existed, and I was surprised to read that, as Hartmann does refer to the inventory of 1930 having read Quenoil.
What was registered at this address, was a Henri Quenvil, glass and ceramics decorator. A clever person managed to find a couple of clippings in the online french library, dating back to 1919, 1923 and 1925.
One add is a demand for glass decorators from the newspaper 'Le Journal' 19 sept 1919, one from a listing in an industrial report from 1925 and one article from Le Figaro from 18 march 1923.
So I guess we can say this signature belongs to Henri Quenvil and not Quenvit or Quenoil.
What is also interesting, is that some books on Legras, say that Quenvil has got nothing to do with Legras, because the quality is far more superior then Quenvil, but at the same time, there was an outlet/department for Saint Denis Glass in the same street on number 62, so maybe as mentioned above, Legras produced blancs for Quenvil.
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I forgot to mention, that the last article was a report on the Exhibition of Lyon in 1923. I love the way some things were described in the early days. It mentions that the Stand of Decorative Arts exhibits a very nice artistic collection of footed bowls, flower bowls, ceiling lights, lamps, sconces, powder boxes, little electric lamps all in enamelled glass from which the reflections are the brightest and shiniest. All the objects on display carry the signature from the decorating artist Quenvil, a young man who can be classified as one of the best. His works of art are for sale in all department stores of good taste.
The clippings have no copyright on them and I have the permission of the person who found this information, who's happy to share it with you.
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Thank-you, yet again, Anne, for your hard work and generous contribution to our knowledge. :-*
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Thank you! I have one or two pieces and love them. The enamelling is fab.
What I love about this information is the ummm 'PR' aspect -
In your first post it appears the authors were 'bigging' up Legras :
'What is also interesting, is that some books on Legras, say that Quenvil has got nothing to do with Legras, because the quality is far more superior then Quenvil,[/u]
but in the write up of the exhibition in 1923 it says:
'All the objects on display carry the signature from the decorating artist Quenvil, a young man who can be classified as one of the best. His works of art are for sale in all department stores of good taste.'
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Sorry, the first post re the books and specialists on Legras was a recent quote. It's for instance in the book 'Legras' by François Théodore. The report on the exhibition is much older of course. Sorry for the confusion.
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Hi Anne
but the sentiment is the same I suppose - the exhibition info was written contemporary to Mr Q enamelling his vases and at the time he was considered to be one of the best.
Much later - i.e. now - it has been said that his work was not good enough to be Legras.
Legras work is also lovely. But in my opinion, I'm not sure on what basis his work would be considered not good enough to be Legras?
The execution of the enamelling on Mr Q's work is very good. So quality wise in terms of execution it is very good.
Perhaps it could be considered that his breadth of design ideas was more limited than the variation of work put out by Legras. But then Legras was the biggest (?) and most prolific and probably decorated by more than one person I suppose.
It's just funny how different spin and PR is put out really.
m
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To be honest with you, I couldn't tell which one out of the two is better, I've never owned a Quenvil, but perhaps from the more recent Legras point of view a bit of chauvinism is involved... as in how very dare you compare that to 'us'. ::)