Alexis Falis (1811-1898), founder of the famous dynasty of jewelers, was born in Liege. His father, originally from the town of Huy in Belgium, was a shoemaker and died early. Alexis, who was only eleven years old, was sent to his great-uncle, Jean-Pierre Favre, in Paris. The talented young man began his career as a jeweler at the Mellerio dits Meller company. In 1838 he founded his own workshop, which focused on refined and complex enameling techniques. During the Second French Empire (1852-1870), when Napoleon III came to power, court life with its inherent craving for luxury was revived in France: grand balls, social entertainment and theaters. The emergence of a new eclectic style, based on a diverse combination of elements of art from different countries and eras, perfectly reflected this desire for external splendor.
In 1876, Lucien Falise (1839–1897), son of Alexis, took over the company when his father retired. The era of world exhibitions had begun. In 1878, Lucien Falize received the main prize of the World Exhibition in Paris and was awarded the Legion of Honor for outstanding achievements in the art of jewelry.
In 1878, Falize entered into a partnership with Germain Bapst, a former French royal jeweler who had a wide clientele among the French high aristocracy. This successful partnership lasted until 1892. Lucien Falise’s clients included many celebrities, including Russian and Romanian monarchs, Laetitia Bonaparte (great-niece of Napoleon I), actress Sarah Bernhardt and writer Colette.
Lucien Falize had a keen interest in Japanese art and used the firm’s expertise in enameling to create exquisite pieces inspired by Japanese designs. He was also a significant figure in the emerging Art Nouveau movement. A talented writer and reviewer, he frequently published under the pseudonym “Monsieur Josse” in arts and crafts magazines, and wrote extensively about the development of French jewelry design in the 1880s and 1890s.
Lucien Falise preferred to engage only in creativity, but, as he wrote to his son André: “A large company cannot survive on works of art alone.” His friend, jeweler and collector Henri Vever, said about Lucien: “How he would like to live in the times of the Medici , freed from the heavy commercial burden and absorbed only in the creation of beautiful works.”
When Lucien died suddenly in 1897, his sons André (1872–1936), Jean-Henri (1874–1948) and Pierre-Isidore (1875–1953), who was also a painter, sculptor and enameller, continued the work under the name “Falize” Frères” (Falise Brothers). General management was assumed by the elder brother, who completed an apprenticeship with goldsmiths and minters in Paris and Lucerne and joined the family enterprise in 1894. Andre was an extremely charismatic man with a large circle of friends, many of whom became his clients.
The brothers took part in the Paris World Exhibition in 1900. Their exhibition brought together Lucien’s own works, joint works by Lucien and André, works begun by Lucien and completed by his sons, and several completely new works by the brothers. These new pieces were largely Art Nouveau. The submitted works were awarded two Grand Prix as a tribute to the past and recognition of the present.
At the turn of the century the company was very successful, in 1904 Falize Frères made the coronation regalia for King Peter I Karadjordjevic of Serbia, and in 1922 the crown for Queen Mary of Edinburgh of Romania. Like many others, the company suffered greatly during the First World War. Soon after its completion, Jean left the case, and Pierre participated in it minimally from the very beginning. The company ceased operations in 1936, when Andre Falize passed away.
