THE ITEM
This remarkable work of mid-century Modernist design is by the renowned ceramic artist and designer Gunnar Nylund, (b.1904 - d.1997). Nylund became well known for his 'matte feldspar' glazed stoneware, crystal glazes and for his stoneware animal sculptures. This piece was designed during his time as artistic director at Rörstrand.
The form of this piece is crafted with beautifully soft, flowing and sculpted curves which subtly highlight the bear's peacefully observant posture. The piece is glazed with Nylund's distinctive semi-matte Hare's Fur running glaze, which is one variation of his famous matte feldspar glaze. This high-quality glaze is sumptuous and richly coloured in its varying tones of gold and brown, which finely striates and flows over the contours, mimicking that of a real bear's fur.
The silky-smooth glazed decor and form makes this a very tactile piece. This piece would be well suited to a room with decor inspired by Mid Mod, Modernist, Contemporary themes.
CONDITION
Excellent. No chips, cracks or repairs. There is mild wear, predominantly in the form of movement marks on the underside of the bear's feet. Please refer to photos as they form part of the condition report. The base bears the stamp that bears Rorstrand's logo and Nylund's initials 'GN'.
MEASUREMENTS
Height: c. 4.5" / 11.5 cm by length c. 5.4" / 13.8 cm (from ears to tail). Width c. 2.9" / 7.5 cm (across body's widest point). Unpackaged weight: 0.4 kg / 386 g
NOTES
Figure will be securely packaged and shipping will be insured. Shipping will be combined for multiple items.
A BIT OF HISTORY
Gunnar Nylund (b. 1904 – d.1997) Nylund was a Swedish ceramic designer and is perhaps best known as the artistic director of Rörstrand. Nylund was first a well-established ceramic artist in Denmark, at the Bing & Grøndahl Porcelain factory in Copenhagen and later at Saxbo.
Nylund was resident at Rörstrand from 1931 until 1955 and for the majority of this time, as artistic director. He became well known for his new matte feldspar glazed stoneware in Hare’s Fur, crystal glazes and for his stoneware animal sculptures. Over five decades, Nylund crafted some 30 reliefs and sculptures commissioned for public spaces, including Europe’s largest stoneware fountain the “Scanisarius” in Bromölla, Sweden.
Most of Nylund’s original sculptures in stoneware Chamotte have ended up in museums, as did much of his other work. Sculptures such as the “Lion Head” is found at the National Museum in Stockholm, “Blue Bird” is at the Sèvres museum in Paris, his antelope head “Abyssinian mountain nyala”, is at the Röhsska museet in Gothenburg and the “Hamadryas Baboon” is at the Malmö Museum. His piece “Bulls head in oxblood” was bought by the Ateneum museum in Helsinki and a lot of his other work can be found at other museums around the world.