Mid2Mod: Viking

Showing posts with label Viking. Show all posts

Saturday, September 24, 2016

Spaces: Living room built-in

The built-ins in the formal living room hold my daughter's treasures. She started collecting swung vases from estate sales 20 years ago, and I usually give her one or two every Christmas. She also loves Blenko owls and other glass figurals.

Some of my daughter's favorite things

Friday, March 25, 2011

Wayne Husted

I've developed a fascination for Blenko glass, and I've decided that Wayne Husted is my favorite Blenko designer. We have several of his pieces at the store, and I have some at home.

Wayne Husted (1927- ) was born in Hudson, New York. After high school, Husted entered the Coast Guard. In 1948 he entered Alfred University, where he ultimately received a M.F.A. in Ceramic Design in 1953.

Husted started to work for Blenko in 1953 and was with the company until 1963. Each year he was with Blenko, he came up with 50-60 new designs. He became known for his large architectural bottles and decanters, which typify the era and which he pioneered at Blenko. Husted's work is highly collectible, and he has become the most sought after of the Blenko designers.

After leaving Blenko, Husted designed for several other glass companies, including Viking, Anchor Hocking, Stelvia and Bischoff.

Husted is still a prolific glass designer today. His Olana collection is described as a "three dimensional painting in glass." After 36 years, he returned to Blenko in 1999.

From waynehusted.com

mid2mod.com

Pronunciation Guide

Saturday, January 22, 2011

The ubiquitous swung vase

Makers of mid-century glass, such as Viking Art Glass and L. E. Smith Glass Company, made swung vases, which were very popular. Other companies like Pilgrim, Fenton, Tiffin and Fostoria made their own versions of the swung vase, but they were not as common.

The vases generally ranged in height from a 7” bud vase to the giant “architectural” floor versions that were sometimes over 40” tall. They were hand-blown, then hand-swung to lengthen, and then the opening was hand-tooled and heat polished smooth. The vases were literally swung around to produce the neck, with stunning results.

Popular colors were amberina (an orange-red fading to yellow, also called persimmon), green, amber, red, blue and an opaque orange usually referred to as bittersweet. However, the vases can be found in other colors, such as peach, amethyst, pale yellow, pale aqua and even multi-colored art glass versions.

With the exception of the very large pieces, these iconic mid-century vases were produced in large quantities, so they are still easy to find and very reasonably priced.

L. E. Smith architectural vase
stylehive.com

Tiffin vase
retroartglass.com

Viking vases
retroartglass.com

Fenton hobnail opalescent vase
replacementslimited.com

L. E. Smith aqua blue vase
replacementlimited.com

Fenton amber hobnail vase
replacementslimited.com

Viking amethyst vase
ebay.com

L. E. Smith vase
retroartglass.com

L. E. Smith bittersweet vase
ebay.com

My daughter's collection of swung vases

Friday, September 24, 2010

Glass masters

1950s glass, once called “the collectibles of the future,” has lived up to its name. The exquisite bottles, bowls and vases from Europe and America that graced almost every twentieth century home have now become highly coveted collectors’ items.

Beautiful glass was created by Italians Paolo Venini, Fulvio Bianconi, Dino Martens, Aldo Nason, Flavio Poli and Carlo Scarpa. Scandinavians such as Sweden’s Sven Palmqvist and Vicke Lindstrand, Denmark’s Per Lutken and Otto Brauer, as well as Finland’s Tapia Wirkkala, Timo Sarpaneva and Kaj Franck satisfied America’s love of dramatic shapes in both clear glass and vibrant colors.

Produced in the United States and perhaps somewhat less exotic to middle-class Americans than European designs were the pieces that came from Blenko, Fenton and Viking. What they lacked in mystique, they made up in accessibility, because almost every mid-century home had a Blenko decanter or carafe, Fenton milk glass or a Viking swung vase.

Most of these pieces were purchased purely for their decorative value and were affordable in almost every home, marking a departure from a time when only the wealthy could own such luxuries.