Christmas Cactus

A exotic gift idea for the modernist horticulturist who has everything - an absolutely fascinating abstract glossy glazed ceramic cactus by Marianne Westman for Rörstrand, circa 1960s, Sweden.

Shot on location at Hudson River Flowers - conveniently located across the street from our shop!
 www.hudsonriverflowers.com

Rather Rare Rörstrands

A suite of subtle yellow pieces by Gertrud Lönegren for Rörstrand, Sweden. A lovely striped design enhanced by a crazing of glass glaze which pools in a sort of crystalline effect at the center of the low bowls. Also adding to their visual interest is a touch of rusty oxidation along the rims. Made at the venerable Swedish company during her short tenure there - somewhere between 1936-41.
Vases 11", 4.5" high
Bowls  5.5", 8" diameter

Vases for the Holidays

Thrilled as always to be included in the mother of all "Lifestyle" periodicals...Martha Stewart Living. For the December 2012 issue - a story on decorating with flowers for the holidays includes our gilt Bavarian porcelain pieces.

The vase with the coral motif (far left), the sweet bird vase (far right), and the heavily gilded cylinder with "Rorschach" design, filled with Poppies, are all ours.

Deco-rate

Svend Hammershøi was a great Dane who created works of pottery for Kahler in the1930s. This group above feature glazes that are antiqued through a painterly application, giving them a distinctive aged patina. 
13",10", 5.5"

Copper Keepers

A small selection of our impressive collection of Scandinavian pottery which all incorporate genuine copper in the glazing process. From the studio of Sven Hofverberg, Sweden, 1950s
All smalls l to r 6.5", 5", 6"

Organic Original

An utterly unique piece of pottery circa 1970 from the studio of Jorgen Mogensen, Denmark. It appears to me to be a sort of hybrid sculpture/freeform vase. There is somthing almost fluid...like cellular mitosis to this design.
8" diameter, 4" high

Sexy Saxbo

Modernism as mastered in pottery by Saxbo (incised LHE) in the 1940s - reminds me so immediately of the 1920's classic Fritz Lang film Metropolis. 12.5" in diameter

Check out the official restoration trailer:

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Any regular reader of my blog knows I like to feature a bird or two at Thanksgiving. This year we're serving a fine example of a late 19th century Japanese Kutani porcelain ginger jar in a rare espresso color (we are used to seeing the typical coral background).
9"

Monkey Business

 

A lesson on the importance of grooming from the Royal Copenhagen master of animal figurative sculpture...Knud Kyhn. As far as we know,  this is the only example of this subject in the United States. Another exists in a museum in Denmark. Stoneware (and as weighty as the name suggests) decorated in his signature Sung Glaze.
Gigantic and heavy at 15" tall and 15" wide.

Tiled Table Top

This may appear to be a typical mid-century mosaic table at first glance, but it is in fact something quite extraordinary. Each of the 49 panels decorating its top are mint condition individual enamel-on-copper tiles, hand-made by a famed Danish artist named Bodil Eje (1930-2006). Made expressly for sale at the venerable design super-store Illums Bolighus in Copenhagen in the 1950s. The colors range from cobalt, indigo, purple, forest green and hints of lavender, accented with shots gold and of course copper metallic accents. The tiles are set into a rosewood surface on a bronze base (with rosewood tipped legs).
24" x 43" x 19" 

You may be intrigued to dive deeper. For more on the acclaimed design destination check out the  Illums Bolighus website:
http://www.illumsbolighus.com/

Magic Orange

Yes, this piece actually has a name, and it's "Magic Orange". Created in Sweden in the 60s by Vincent Nilsson, a third generation potter of a Swedish ceramics family of note.

What I find so intriguing is his ability to recreate the look and feel of citrus fruit through a speckling style that dots the surface with a variety of colors to mimic the skin of an orange.
Huge and heavy at 14.5" in diameter

Isn't She Lovely?

An Art Deco artifact decorated in the signature Persian glaze of Michael Andersen & Son, Bornholm, Demark, circa 1930s. A little bit of ceramic erotica in shades of turquois and blush pink.
Top measures 3.5 x5 and box is 3.5" high

Neo-Classicism Meets Mid-Century

Never ones to rest on our laurels...we prefer to present an unexpected mix, not strictly mid-century and certainly not minimalist. Amid some of our latest Scandinavian ceramic treasures is a white marble bust of an idealized young Roman (Emperor Maximinus perhaps?) by famed German sculptor Otto Poertzel (1876-1963) From his early turn of the century classical period, this handsome man measures 16" to the top of his valiant head.

New Moon

With the rich treasure trove that has just arrived from Scandinavia, how was I to choose an item for this blog entry? I decided to go with rarity as well as an oddity. Designed in Sweden by A. Andersson and decorated by Birger Larsson for Wallåkra (incised AWA) in the early 40s is this almost lunar looking vase. It has the most intriguing glaze reminiscent of bubbling tar in a kind of gunmetal grey color and a surface puckered everywhere like little starbursts and peppered with erratic eruptions. The scale is monumental, as wide as it is tall at 13" x 13". This is a wow-factor Wallåkra vase for the ages.

Watch This Space

Every other fall...something big happens. After our partners in Denmark have collected the rarest goods from all over Scandinavia, a shipping container packed to the hilt with hundreds of fine wares makes its way by boat from Copenhagen to New York. We've spent many hours unloading and unpacking one treasure after another and are in the midst of inventory...so that we can finally share these extraordinary items with you. We may have kept the European bubble-wrap industry afloat this time!

Kryptonite Super-Glass

Three Stunning Crystal Obelisks from Mid-century Venice

7", 10", 15.5"

Gilty Pleasure

From a special line by Heinrich called Chiemsee (after the fresh water lake in Bavaria). Hand painted with raised genuine 24K gold dots in an effervescent pattern that bubbles upwards from the base to the rim. Whimsical and elegant at once. 1950s, Germany 
7"

Tutti Fruitti Fratelli

Fratelli Toso made glass objects that look sweet enough to eat. The technique used to achieve the candy striped effect is called 'a canne' in Italian, which is exactly what it sounds like...the use of colored canes of glass melted to create a new form, like the delicious stopper bottle you see above.
11''

Get Roped In

An amazing example of a Cordonato d'Oro compote by Ercole Barovier for Barovier & Toso, circa 1950s. 
7" high, 10" in diameter

How to Get a Head in Design

This would have been great for a Halloween post...alas, someone named Sandy interrupted us. Perfect for the decorator with an appreciation for the eccentric comes this hyper-realistic German porcelain bust of a man.
life size @ around 12" tall

Fine Finnish

Not unlike the design aesthetic of yesterday's sculpture (mixing smoky grey in clear and frost) is this cubist vase from the venerable Tapio Wirkkala for Iittala (signed), created circa 1960.
8.5" tall

Glass Masterpiece

A rare and exquisite one-of-a-kind glass sculpture from Archimede Seguso (signed). Smoky clear grey glass sits aloft a frosted cylindrical base. Hand blown in Murano circa 1960.
Quite substantial at 22" tall and 10" wide

More Rust to Lust After

A stellar selection from the hand of Carl-Harry Stålhane for Rörstrand. Amassed in Sweden over time by a serious collector with an eye for pristine condition and an appreciation for a complete grouping.

The smalls in a drippy, shiny, rusty palette are all between 6-7". The bowls range from 3.5"- 8".

Kobalt & Kaleidoscopic

German Porcelain in trippy patterns of genuine 24k gold and real cobalt (or kobalt as the German's are apt to spell it). The center piece by Schumann Arzberg at 20.5" tall is really monumental considering the delicate nature of the material. The others are by one of our Bavarian faves...Heinrich (left to right 12", 10.5", 8", 11")

A Return to Rust

10" Striped Vase by Gunnar Nylund for Rörstrand Sweden, 1950

5" Vase Gunnar Nylund for Rörstrand Sweden, 1950

10"Pitcher Eva-Staehr Nielsen for Saxbo, 1940s

We've Got The Power!

We are happy to report that the power has returned to our section of downtown Manhattan! It's been a trying time for all New York City residents and we sincerely hope the regular rhythm of life is on the return. Store hours will resume today and I will get back to blogging as soon as I can.
In the meantime, please considering helping those who are still suffering:

http://www.redcross.org/charitable-donations