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Wirkkala himself later explained that the craft aesthetic in postwar Finland, ornamental. romantic, and based on natural forms and materials " survives principally under the patronage of the large industrial firms. Industry has secured the services of craftsmen who can avail themselves of the technical facilities of the factory without, however, forfeiting their own artistic individuality ". |
GLASS
- ART - FUNCTION TAPIO WIRKKALA (1915 - 1985) Craftsman
and designer of glass, ceramics, metal, wooden objects, lighting,
furniture, appliances, graphics, and exhibitions, Tapio Wirkkala
was Finland's most versatile and influential designer in the second
half of the twentieth century, evoking a national identity in his
work by drawing on the materials and processes of Finnish handicraft
and naturalistic forms. Educated at the Taideteollinen Keskuskoulu
(Central School of Industrial Arts) in Helsinki (1933-36), where
he was later artistic director (1951-54), Wirkkala became glass
designer for Iittala after sharing First KANTARELLI VASE (1946) This blown-glass vase belongs to the Kantarelli (Chanterelle) series, which first brought international recognition to the Finnish craftsman and designer Tapio Wirkkala. Mimicking in paper-thin glass the natural structure and surface of the frail ribboned mushroom that gave the series its name, Wirkkala's simple and elegant form captures the spirit of organic growth in its swelling shape and the vertical lines of its cut decoration. Wirkkala himself later explained that the craft aesthetic in postwar Finland, ornamental. romantic, and based on natural forms and materials " survives principally under the patronage of the large industrial firms. Industry has secured the services of craftsmen who can avail themselves of the technical facilities of the factory without, however, forfeiting their own artistic individuality ". Wirkkala's irregular shapes and surface decorations, particularly the decorative lines he cut in different depths to produce an elaborate relief effect, initially proved difficult for the glassblowers at the Iittala factory to make. Wirkkala, however, collaborated with the glass craftsmen and helped them succeed in producing these and a number of similarly textured vases. Exhibited at the IX and X Triennale exhibitions in Milan in 1951 and 1954, where the designer won six Grand Prizes, the Kantarelli series was produced between 1947 and 1960. Information for the art shown above:
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Prize
with Kaj Franck in a competition organized by the glassworks. He
achieved international recognition in the late 1940s and 1950s with
his Kantarelli (Chanterelle) glasses and laminated wooden dishes,
as well as for his role as designer and commissioner of the Finnish
sections at the IX and X Triennale exhibitions in Milan in 1951
and 1954. He was awarded three Grand Prizes at each exhibition -
for exhibition design, glass, and wood carving in 1951, and glass,
sculpture, and exhibition design in 1954. The exhibitions brought
Wirkkala various commissions - from Raymond Loewy, with whom Wirkkala
was associated in New York in 1955-56; from the Rosenthal porcelain
factory (initially through Loewy) for designs throughout Wirkkala's
career; from Venini, with whom Wirkkala had a similar long-standing
relationship for glass design; from the lighting firm Airam, for
whom Wirkkala designed opalescent glass bulbs to be used without
shades; and from Hackman, for whom Wirkkala designed versions of
the traditional Finnish puukko knife (from 1963). Wirkkala married
the noted Finnish ceramist Rut Bryk in 1945 and collaborated with
her on several projects. 