Vase of elephants, on display as part of the "Jazz Age" exhibit at the Cleveland Museum of Art in Cleveland, Ohio, in the United States.

Émile Gallé (1846-1904) was born in Nancy, France. His middle-class furniture-maker father was able to give him a good schooling that involved the study of botany and drawing. Gallé apprenticed as a glassmaker at Meisenthal, and returned to his father's factory in 1871 to execute clear glass decorated with enamel for cabinets and other pieces. On the side, he began developing an Art Nouveau glass style which carved or etched plant motifs in two or more colors onto heavy, opaque glass. After hs father's death, he became Director of the Maison Gallé-Reinemer in 1877. His glass art won high praise at the Paris Exhibition of 1878 and again at the Paris Exhibition of 1889. He began incorporating metallic foil, bubbles, and other techniques into his work, and established a glass factory to mass-produce artists' designs.

This vase of carved, molded, and overlaid glass was designed by Gallé before his death. It was manufacted by his glassworks company some time between 1918 and 1931.

1. CMAJazzAge