About Jean Daum

The Daum family were originally lawyers, not glassmakers. Jean Daum, father of the famous Daum brothers' family, took over a glassworks near Nancy, France in 1878 as part payment of a debt. His son Auguste (who had been trained as a lawyer) joined him shortly afterwards, to help improve the business. More than a decade later, and some five years after their father had died, the younger brother Antonin (a newly trained engineer) joined him. It was their business and creative skills which made the Verrerie de Nancy a success. Daum Nancy glass is the best and most famous French cameo glass of the Art Nouveau period from 1890 to 1920. The glass was called "cameo glass" because it was built up with different colored layers and cut back with acid to reveal beautiful floral or scenic designs. Daum Nancy built this glass into vases, bowls, and lamps. Cameo glass is intricate to make. First the glass was covered with an acid resist (wax). Then a glass artist carved the design into the resist, followed by immersion in hydrofluoric acid. The acid ate away the glass wherever the resist was removed. The longer the immersion in the acid, the more glass was eaten away. The wax was then melted away and a new layer applied. The process was then repeated. Each successive acid cutting added a layer of detail and possibly color if the vase had enough colored layers. The success of the vase depended largely on the skill of the artist. During the 1910's, the Art Nouveau period was losing popularity and the Art Deco period was starting to take hold. Many of the Daum Nancy vases produced during this period are called "transitional". They have elements of both the Art Nouveau and Art Deco periods. By the 1920's, the Art Deco movement was getting into full swing. Emile Galle died in 1904. The Galle factory couldn't keep up with the changes and went out of business. Daum vase factory kept changing with the times. They produced some beautiful work during this period. Daum has been able to change with the times to the present day. They are still in business and producing beautiful contemporary glass.