Table Lamp in Pâte de verre by Gabriel Argy-Rousseau, Titled “Arbres”

Argy Rousseau’s “Arbres” table lamp presents a nocturnal vision of a topiary tree. Rousseau’s stylization of trees was primarily based on Islamic Art, from the cypress trees of the Topkapi palace to the verdant backgrounds of Mughal miniatures. Opposed to the perspectival depiction of trees in European medieval tapestries, Islamic depictions of trees isolated each leaf and flattened foliage into a symmetrical pattern.