Zellique Studio Bowls and Baskets

Vintage art glass bowl features striking Art Deco style 5-lobed pulled feather decor in blue, purple, and Bordeau red glass, enclosed in clear glass. The center of the bowl has a convex element, adding an Op-Art element to the composition. The design of the bowl is reminiscent of the pulled feather pieces that Morel created while at Orient & Plume, but the choice of semi-transparent and clear glass instead of colored iridescent glass, used in his earlier works, shows a Post Modern influence and a more contemporary take on the American Art Nouveau glass tradition. The bowl is signed in etching by the artist on the bottom with "Zellique Studio JM 8-1988 FBVI98". Joseph Morel is an established American glass artist, based in California. He began his career in glass artist at California State University, Chico; after graduating in 1973, he worked at Orient & Flume Art Glass, an internationally renowned glass studio, where he was mentored by visiting European glass masters over the next seven years. Orient & Flume early work was directed toward recreating the silver-luster or iridescent glass of turn-of-the-century artists like Tiffany, Steuben, and Loetz, for example, Tiffany Cypriote glass and Steuben Aurenes. The company regularly drew in other artists with various skills in working glass, creating learning opportunities for their employees. In 1980, Morel opened Zellique Art Glass in Benicia, California, where he was able to utilize his skills a glass designer. As the American art glass movement grew, other glass studios opened in Bay Area in 1980s - 1990s; in early 2000s there were five glassblowing studios in Benicia: Zellique Art Glass, Lindsay Art Glass, Nourot Glass, Opal, and Smyers Glass...