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8 Ultima Thule Glasses Designed by Tapio Wirkkala for Iittala, Rare

About the Item

A set of 8 "highball" or "beer" glasses designed by Tapio Wirkkala for Iittala. The glass pattern is called Ultima Thule. "The Iittala Ultima Thule glassware was designed by Tapio Wirkkala as part of the Ultima Thule barware collection for Iittala. Ultima Thule glassware was designed in 1968 and was used in the first Finnair flight in 1969, and later in their first class cabin service. The term Ultima Thule was used in medieval times to refer to places beyond the known world, or sometimes, to Scandinavia. Evocative of an icy landscape of the furthest reaches, Ultima Thule is the most popular line of glassware ever produced by Iittala." Each glass is approximately 6 1/8 inches tall and 2 5/8 inches in diameter at the mouth with a 350 ml / 12 ounce capacity. Judging by the appearance and size, the glasses fall somewhere within the "highball" glass and the "beer" glass or a larger double size version of the currently produced "champagne" glass. I think the glasses were probably from first production in 1968 and were later discontinued ? Or are the glasses prototypes ? None of the glasses have their stickers or are they marked.

Creator:
Tapio Wirkkala (Designer)
Design:
Triennale Pendant Light
Dimensions:
Height: 6.13 in (15.58 cm)Width: 2.63 in (6.69 cm)Depth: 2.63 in (6.69 cm)
Sold As:
Set of 8
Style:
Scandinavian Modern (Of the Period)
Materials and Techniques:
Glass
Place of Origin:
Finland
Period:
1960-1969
Date of Manufacture:
1968
Condition:
Wear consistent with age and use. All eight of the glasses are in very good vintage condition, no chips, cracks or discolorations. One glass has a factory discoloration inside the lip of the top, all glasses have some air bubbles throughout.
Seller Location:
Doraville, GA
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU7961232920422
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Tapio Wirkkala

Along with architect Alvar Aalto, the designer Tapio Wirkkala was Finland’s leading contributor to the Scandinavian interpretation of modernism in the mid-20th century. Prolific and innovative, Wirkkala excelled in a wide range of fields, including glass, furniture, porcelain, jewelry and tableware. The hallmark of his talent was an ability to impart a craft aesthetic based on natural forms — leaves, ice, bubbles, birds — to industrially produced designs.

A native of Helsinki, Wirkkala studied at the national School of Applied Arts and took up a career in graphic design. After serving in the Finnish army during World War II, he joined the glassmaking firm Iittala, an association that would continue to the end of his life. Wirkkala learned every aspect of glassmaking in keeping with his belief that an artist-designer should be involved in all stages of production. His best-known works for Iittala are vases and drinking vessels that resemble either carved ice or icicles. In 1956, Wirkkala began a long relationship with the porcelain maker Rosenthal, for whom he designed elegant table pieces, such as the Finlandia coffee service and the biomorphic Pollo vases.

House Beautiful magazine declared Wirkkala’s Leaf platter the “most beautiful object” of 1951. (The acclaim led to his brief employment stint with industrial designer Raymond Loewy in New York.) That platter was one of the first designs Wirkkala made using laminated sheets of plywood sanded to a smooth surface that resembles an abstract leaf. It would go on to become a motif in many Wirkkala furniture pieces — most notably in inlaid coffee tables for Asko — and in a sense these are the works most emblematic of his personal aesthetic.

Wirkkala was a traditionalist in many ways, but he had a modernist’s practical approach, incorporating his leaf-like spirals into simple, functional objects. That is the core attraction of Wirkkala’s designs: They stand out with a striking, sculptural energy yet blend in as part of a warm and comfortable decor.

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