Glass is life.
Glass can be fluid, and fragile,
simple or complicated.
It is heavy, transparent or
at times even polluted.
Glass can be cut,
scratched or worn.
It is full of colour or almost invisible.
And just as with life, glass is best appreciated
in the light it reflects on its surroundings.
Glass, which basically is the controlled
transformation of sand through firing,
has intrigued man
for thousands of years.
For centuries the focus has been
on the skill of the craftsmen.
How do you obtain
clear flawless pieces,
or control difficult techniques
such as cutting, engraving or application.
But at the beginning of the 20th century, a new direction in glassmaking started to take shape.
A direction influenced by modern
architecture, design and art.
New pieces emerged that
followed functionalist ideals,
but in other pieces the functional aspects were increasingly
overshadowed by a more purely artistic value.
This fruitful tension between
artistic value and a functional purpose
reached its climax in the period
between circa 1940 and 1960.
In this period 3 countries
stand out as leading this trend:
Sweden, Italy and Finland.
Each with their own characteristics
and yet all under the same umbrella
of optimism and modernism.
At our next sale, we are proud to be offering a rare and
extensive collection of glass from this period of transformation
with an emphasis on pieces
from Italy and Sweden.
The collection of the Danish physician Torben Sørensen
is the result of one person’s relentless pursuit
of the next perfect piece
for more than 4 decades.
The pieces from Sweden show the rich variety
of Swedish glass from circa 1910 and up until the 1960s.
It includes great pieces
from artists such as
Simon Gate, Edvard Hald, Vicke Lindstrand,
Ingeborg Lundin and many others.
Together with pieces from Finland, they show
a regional tendency towards clarity and form.
The section with Italian Murano glass is
filled with colours and amusing pieces,
and some of the highlights from artists
such as Fulvio Bianconi and Archimede Seguso
are probably the closest
we come to seeing
nominally functional objects being treated as
a canvas for a piece of abstract modern art.
The collection contains about 150 lots,
which are part of our upcoming Copenhagen sale,
while approximately 200 other lots will be offered
in our online sales in the coming weeks.
The collection ranges from rare collector’s
pieces to simple decorative objects.
We hope there is something
for everyone to enjoy.
