Haley's Ruba Rombic mold-blown glassware was inspired by Cubist paintings he saw at the 1925 Paris Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes. According to a 1928 advertisement, Haley derived its name from ruba'i, a Persian poetry genre, and the geometry term rhombic, meaning an irregular form having no right angles. The name implies that these glass objects merge refined art and scientific knowledge, an appropriate combination for expressionistic objects manufactured industrially. Department stores across America sold the factory-produced Ruba Rombic glassware line at an affordable price for middle-class consumers.
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Manufacturer:Consolidated Lamp and Glass Company, Art Glassware Division, Coraopolis, PA
Date:1928
Medium:Glass
Dimensions:H. 4, Diam. 3 in. (10.2 x 7.6 cm) (irregular)
Classification:Glass
Credit Line:John C. Waddell Collection, Gift of John C. Waddell, 1998
Object Number:1998.537.24
John C. Waddell, New York (until 1998; his gift to MMA)
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "American Modern, 1925–1940: Design for a New Age," May 16, 2000–January 7, extended to February 4, 2001, unnumbered cat. (p. 122).
Newport Beach, Calif. Orange County Museum of Art. "American Modern, 1925–1940: Design for a New Age," May 25–August 19, 2001, unnumbered cat.
Flint. Flint Institute of Arts. "American Modern, 1925–1940: Design for a New Age," September 14–December 16, 2001, unnumbered cat.
Philadelphia. Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. "American Modern, 1925–1940: Design for a New Age," January 11–April 7, 2002, unnumbered cat.
Charlotte. Mint Museum of Craft and Design. "American Modern, 1925–1940: Design for a New Age," May 3–July 28, 2002, unnumbered cat.
Tulsa. Philbrook Museum of Art. "American Modern, 1925–1940: Design for a New Age," August 23–November 17, 2002, unnumbered cat.
Karen Davies. At Home in Manhattan: Modern Decorative Arts, 1925 to the Depression. Exh. cat., Yale University Art Gallery. New Haven, 1983, pp. 48, 58 under no. 41, discusses “Ruba Rombic” designs.
Dianne H. Pilgrim inThe Machine Age in America 1918–1941. Exh. cat., Brooklyn Museum. New York, 1986, pp. 294, 360 n. 45, discusses “Ruba Rombic” designs.
Alastair Duncan. American Art Deco. New York, 1986, p. 126, ill. p. 124 (color; W. M. Schmid, Jr. collection), discusses “Ruba Rombic” designs.
Alastair Duncan. Art Deco. London, 1988, p. 102, ill. (W. M. Schmid, Jr. collection), discusses “Ruba Rombic” designs.
Elaine Louie. "Currents: Scotch and Soda, and a Couple of Cubes." New York Times (September 10, 1992), p. C3, discusses “Ruba Rombic” designs.
April Kingsley inCraft in the Machine Age 1920–1945: The History of Twentieth-Century American Craft. Ed. Janet Kardon. Exh. cat., American Craft Museum. New York, 1995, p. 96, ill. p. 162 (color; Corning Museum of Glass collection), discusses “Ruba Rombic” designs.
J. Stewart Johnson. American Modern, 1925–1940: Design for a New Age. Exh. cat., The Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York, 2000, pp. 64, 171, 179, ill. p. 122 (color).
Glenn Adamson inShapes from Out of Nowhere: Ceramics from the Robert A. Ellison Jr. Collection. Exh. cat., The Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York, 2021, p. 13, fig. 12 (color).
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