Vtg Mid Century Kaj Franck Style Nuutajärvi Soap Bubbles Art Glass Vase 7 1950s

  

On this great day on the Bay we are indeed delighted to offer this very scarce mid century Kaj Franck style soap bubble art glass vase. This thick walled glass was designed by Kaj Franck for Nuutajärvi in the 1950s. It is in very good gently used condition with no observable chips, cracks, breaks or repairs. Kaj Gabriel Franck was a leading figure in 20th-century Finnish design, specializing in ceramics and glass.

As the creative director of Arabia Ceramics, now part of Iittala, he, along with fellow Finns Timo Sarpaneva and Tapio Wirkkala, helped popularize the bright, warm and curvy aesthetic of Scandinavian modernism. Design Forum Finlands Kaj Franck Design Prize, established in 1992 and awarded each year around his birthday, is among the countrys most prestigious honors for designers. Franck was born in 1911 in the city of Vyborg, which now belongs to Russia, but was then part of the Grand Duchy of Finland. He studied furniture design at the Central School of Industrial Design in Helsinki, and after graduating in 1932, worked as a catalogue illustrator for the Riihimäki glassworks, exploring interior and textile design on the side.

Having served in the Finnish armed forces during World War II, he joined Arabia in 1945 as their head of design. He remained with the company for many years, steering its line of tableware in a dynamic new direction.

Franck professed an aversion to superfluous ornament. His ceramic designs were nevertheless complex and eye-catching, animated with playful, geometric forms.

One of his most famous creations for Arabia was the Origami dish from the early 1960s, a glossyall-white serving piece resembling a subtly folded piece of paper with four shallow sections for holding food. Franck is better known among collectors for his glass designs, particularly those he created for Iittala starting in the late 1940s. In a 1947 Iittala-sponsored glass competition, Franck shared the top prize with Tapio Wirkkala. In 1977, Franck redesigned the series, renamed Teemaa. Francks designs for Iittala embodied the Finnish concept of pelkistetty, which literally means reduced and in the design world refers to the pared-down, minimal qualities of modernism.

This principle, evidenced in objects like this elegant, unfussy set of four jewel-toned drinking glasses from the 1960s, informed Francks view of the manufacturing process as well. Critical of mass-production and consumerism, he was one of the countrys first professionals in his field to advocate recycling. He became known as the conscience of Finnish design, a role he embraced as a professor and later artistic director at University of Art and Design in Helsinki. In honor of Francks 100th birthday, in 2011, Iittala reissued Kartio glasses, Teema tableware and Purnukka jars, among other of his designs that retain their contemporary feel decades after their creation. We ask that you carefully review the photos as they tell so much more than we can articulate.

Zoom in for a closer look at any and all condition issues. As always, we thank you for taking a moment to consider this piece. The item "Vtg Mid Century Kaj Franck Style Nuutajärvi Soap Bubbles Art Glass Vase 7 1950s" is in sale since Sunday, April 7, 2019.

This item is in the category "Pottery & Glass\Glass\Art Glass\Scandinavian\Other Scandinavian Art Glass". The seller is "topleus2014" and is located in Renton, Washington. This item can be shipped to United States, United Kingdom, Denmark, Romania, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Czech republic, Finland, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Estonia, Australia, Greece, Portugal, Cyprus, Slovenia, Japan, China, Sweden, South Korea, Indonesia, Taiwan, Thailand, Belgium, France, Hong Kong, Ireland, Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Italy, Germany, Austria, Bahamas, Israel, Mexico, New Zealand, Singapore, Switzerland, Norway, Saudi arabia, United arab emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Croatia, Malaysia, Brazil, Chile, Costa rica, Panama, Trinidad and tobago, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica, Bangladesh, Brunei darussalam, Bolivia, Ecuador, Egypt, French guiana, Guernsey, Gibraltar, Guadeloupe, Iceland, Jersey, Jordan, Cambodia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, Macao, Martinique, Nicaragua, Peru, Pakistan, Paraguay, Viet nam, Uruguay, Philippines, Aruba, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Saint kitts and nevis, Turks and caicos islands, Canada, South africa, Colombia, Antigua and barbuda, Saint lucia, Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman islands, Sri lanka, Maldives, Oman, Reunion, Montserrat, Ukraine.

1. Country/Region of Origin: Sweden
2. Brand: Kaj Franck
3. Object Type: Vase
4. Original/Reproduction: Vintage Original
5. Type of Glass: Hand Blown Glass