Lalique’s professional career, first as a goldsmith and then, more famously as a glass maker, spanned both the Art Nouveau and the Art Deco eras.
Lalique rented his first glassworks in 1909, at Combs-la-vile near Fontainebleau. Initially the factory produced only perfume bottles, but by the 1920s Lalique began to manufacture other works in glass such as jewellery, mirrors, lamps, chandeliers and tableware.
He exhibited at Paris in 1925, his celebrated glass fountain provided both a centrepiece for the Perfume Pavilion as well as a defining symbol of French Art Deco of the 1920s.
By the 1930s, Lalique’s innovation was challenged by other makers such as Sabino, and even though he was in his seventies, Lalique continued his stewardship of the firm which had grown to employ over 600 people.