This delicious duo of handblown art glass is by Bertil Vallien (b. 1938 - ), internationally celebrated Swedish glass artist, sculptor, ceramist and designer. The pair are from the collectable 'Antikva' series designed in 1977 and from the 'Artist Collection' for (Kosta) Boda, one of the worlds leading glassworks. The Artist Collection concept was introduced by Vallien to give glass artists the freedom for personal, creative expression and to remove the 'mass produced' feeling. Pieces are limited edition studio works, individual to the artist that created them.
The taller Sea-Green hexagonal bottle vase that is finished with the striated Marigold yellow neck (model 47834) is crafted from a combination of Sea-Green and Lime-Green frit glass. The frit glass technique merges fragments of coloured glass in clear glass to create the closely freckled effect, similar to the drifting within a snow-globe.
The smaller and also hexagonal bottle vase (model 48010) bears the same combination of sea-green and lime-green frit glass, also in the snow-drifting technique similar but is finished with a striated Pale-Blue frit glass neck.
Beautifully Modernist, these pieces are both sculpturally geometric yet organic and unique from their handblown crafting process.
CONDITION
Excellent, no chips, cracks or repairs. There is mild wear in the form of movement marks on the underside of the bases that is commensurate with the age of the pieces - please refer to photos as part of the condition report. The underside of the base on both pieces is engraved with 'BODA, ARTIST COL, B VALLIEN'. The taller bottle is also engraved with the number '47834' and labelled with the 'Boda, Artist Collection, Sweden' label.
MEASUREMENTS
- Taller / Marigold Neck Bottle. height: c. 5.9" / 15 cm x c. 2.2" / 5.5 cm base diameter.
- Smaller / Pale-blue Neck bottle: height: c. 3.9" / 10 cm x c. 1.6" / 4 cm base diameter.
- Unpackaged weight (both pieces): c. 0.3 kg / 335g
NOTES
Vases will be securely packaged and shipping will be insured. Shipping will be combined for multiple items.
A BIT OF HISTORY
Born 1938, Bertil Vallien was only 15 when he left home, drawn by the allure of the big city. After a series of occasional jobs, as a window-dresser at one of the main department stores in Stockholm, and as an apprentice in his father's decorating firm, Vallien would eventually decide to become an artist which would lead him into the world of ceramics. The guidance he received in his early career included that of Stig Lindberg - one of Sweden's foremost designers of ceramic art and one of the leading designers for Rörstrand in the 1970's.
Today, Vallien is one of the most well-known representatives of 20th century Swedish ceramic and art glass design and is represented at the Swedish National Museum of Art and Design as well as abroad in the Everson Museum of Art of New York.
Valiien's works have only become more collectable over the years with sculptures from his Head and Journey (Boat) series fetching up to $20,000 USD.