Paul Crist 1944-2025

Paul and Petra, Rainbow, CA. 2022

Where does one begin to describe this man who was such a prolific figure in the field of Tiffany lamps? His career was quite extraordinary. After reading his bio here, I'm sure you will agree. It's rare to encounter a person blessed not only with engineering skills but also great artistic ability.

Clearly, many people came into contact with him in widely differing situations and each will have their own 'Paul stories'. This is mine.

It begins in the late 1990s when friends Jim Engel, Bob Miller and I were at a Fontaine's auction in Pittsfield, MA. It was a regular pilgrimage we undertook a few times each year extending well into the 2000s. The 5am Saturday morning slog from Rochester to Fontaine's in Pittsfield, MA for the 10am previews was a welcome price to pay for such a visual feast. The many wonderful lamps on show presented the rare opportunity to examine them in person. This period saw a wave of rocketing prices, not only for Tiffany but many non-Tiffany lamps that held and continue to hold so much mystery.

Paul sometimes vetted Fontaine's lamps prior to auction, he also put on presentations and seminars for the auction goers. These were mostly introductions to the topic, the firms responsible for these lamps and their historical significance etc.

On one such occasion I had the opportunity to meet this guy who was so revered by many for his extraordinary knowledge and hands-on ability. Paul had brought with him, a giant book, black cover, rough and ready, bulging at the seams. It was clearly a working copy of something that would, one day, form the basis of the volume on the Non-Tiffany makers, the Bible, Mosaic Shades Volume II. These were photos he took of lamp collections that he had visited throughout the country. Dozens of collectors had opened their doors for Paul to document the best of what they had. Jim and I sat on the floor in a corner of Fontaine's just soaking in all the images of rare, never seen before lamps he encountered on his travels. We invited Paul to lunch at a local diner. This was a stroke of genius. It's true to say that we learned more about leaded lamps during that lunch than at any time before or since. The kimono was flung wide open and we came away re-energized, knowing that there was far, far more to this topic than we had ever anticipated.

I started my leadedlamps.com website around 1998 posting pages for interesting new discoveries. I invited Paul to give his opinion on my selections, he would offer his reasons for pointing out the good with the bad. Over the years we got know each other better as a result. Whenever a phone call came from Paul, there was always something to be learned. Once I was at band practice, in the middle of a song I got a call from him. So we stopped playing, I picked up and Paul then proceeded to tell me, in exquisite detail, how Henry Belcher made his incredible mosaic windows. He was very motivated and I got to witness this and other revelations for years to come.

After Mosaic Shades II was published in 2006, Paul had already started his Tiffany Book. However, the second part dedicated to the non-Tiffany makers, Mosaic Shades Volume 3, was anxiously awaited. That got going around 2019. After he sent me a huge box of his notes, we had decided to collaborate as I had images and other important research material that should be incorporated. This effort didn't progress beyond the draft stage of a few chapters as Paul was focused, quite rightly, on getting the Tiffany book finished. There were many revisions and as new research on Tiffany continued to be revealed, an additional year or two was spent incorporating the updates. It was published in November of 2023 to great reviews and is considered the most in-depth work on Tiffany Studios history and its lamps, by far.

With the advent of the book being publishing in late 2023 followed by the closing of Paul Crist Studios a few months later, the challenge of redefining his role was foremost in his mind. Fortunately, the big Auction houses were still using his vetting services and there was a renewed focus on restarting work on the third and final volume of Mosaic Shades.

Sadly, on January 16th this year, 2025 Paul passed away unexpectedly after battling health issues. I will miss him on many different levels, he was a complex and interesting man. Looking back, I was most fortunate to be sitting on the floor at Fontaine's all those years ago, marveling at future possibilities. I am grateful for his mentorship, and the legacy of the books he left us all.