The Danner Memorial Window.
Photo: Courtesy of Tiffany & Co.
Auction of the Week: Tiffany Window Surpasses Record As Most Expensive Ever Sold
Hitting the block for the first time in 24 years, the stained-glass wonder originally designed for an Ohio church went for $12.48 million at Sotheby’s New York, eclipsing the former record of $2 million
Danner Memorial Window. Photo: Courtesy of Tiffany & Co.
A mesmerizing stained-glass Tiffany window that was originally designed for an Ohio church has sold at auction for $12.4 million, smashing its estimate of $5-7 million. The Danner Memorial Window, which was created by Louis Comfort Tiffany and Agnes Northrop, is a monumental three-part landscape window, which has been in the collection of American businessman Alan Gerry. A centerpiece at the recent Sotheby’s Modern Evening Auction, which took place on November 18, bidding opened at $4.5 million. The price quickly escalated as three bidders spent six and a half minutes bidding for the leaded glass window.
The piece attracted much fanfare in the lead-up with its fully immersive presentation, designed to transport visitors into Northrop’s creative mind. The display at Sotheby’s York Avenue galleries included a simulation of sunrise and sunset that interacted with the stained glass, complete with soothing sounds of nature to round out the experience.
“This record-breaking sale not only celebrates not only a Tiffany masterpiece but a landmark moment for the Tiffany market,” says Jodi Pollack, Sotheby’s Chairman and Co-Worldwide Head of 20th Century Design. “This auction is an important milestone, marking the first time a major work by Tiffany Studios has appeared within the context of a marquee evening auction, firmly establishing Tiffany within the pantheon of the most iconic artists of the twentieth century.”
The Danner Memorial Window. Photo: Courtesy of Tiffany & Co.
Created at the peak of both Louis Comfort Tiffany and Agnes Northrop’s careers, this striking landscape window is a celebration of the very best of Tiffany’s artistry. Fruit-laden trees gracefully arch across a a winding river that twists beneath the warm glow of the sun. The sky is painted in layers of amber and blue, creating a light effect that seems to glow from within. There is a field of fiery red poppies, enhancing the scene’s dreamy nature.
Designed in 1913 as a memorial to John and Terressa Danner, founding members of the First Baptist Church in Canton, Ohio, the window holds boasts a painterly quality akin to the great master painters of the past in its treatment of the sublime beauty of nature.
“We celebrate not just a Tiffany masterpiece, but a defining moment in the art world,” says Pollock. We also honor Alan Gerry, whose commitment to American art and cultural preservation enriches our shared heritage.”
The window achieved $2 million when it appeared at auction in 2000, a world auction record for a Tiffany window at the time. It can be compared to such other masterpieces as the Landscape Window for Linden Hall and Autumn Landscape Window (both in the permanent collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Cover: The Danner Memorial Window.
Photo: Courtesy of Tiffany & Co.
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