Pair of Amber Blenko Glass Owl Bookends
View Similar Items
Pair of Amber Blenko Glass Owl Bookends
About the Item
- Creator:Blenko Glass (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 7 in (17.78 cm)Width: 5 in (12.7 cm)Depth: 1.5 in (3.81 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1960-1969
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Redding, CT
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU959512686861
Blenko Glass
A producer of hand-blown glass since 1893, Blenko Glass is currently headquartered in Milton, West Virginia, where it has operated since 1921. Among its many illustrious projects are the stained-glass windows it produced for St. Patrick’s Cathedral and the Washington National Cathedral. Blenko is known today for the brilliant colors of its glass vessels and objects—particularly those produced in the 1950s and ’60s—which range from jewel-like blues and greens to brilliant reds and yellows.
The company was founded by William J. Blenko, an English immigrant who was apprenticed to a glassmaker in his native London as a young man. Blenko developed expertise in the production of rondels, the round panes used in stained glass windows. His interest in the potential of natural gas to fire glass furnaces led him to Milton, where abundant reserves of the fuel had attracted a pool of skilled glassblowers. Under the name Eureka Glass, his company began making window glass in 1923, and in 1925, he was joined in the business by his son, William H. Blenko.
When the Great Depression quelled demand for stained glass, William J. Blenko brought local Milton glassblowers into the company to begin producing stem- and tableware, products for which the company, which changed its name to Blenko in 1930, is now best known. Up until the end of World War II, Blenko’s tableware designs were fairly straightforward, and they sold well at American department such as Gump’s, in San Francisco. The company was also commissioned in 1930 to produce a line of reproductions for Colonial Williamsburg.
In 1947, the company hired as its art director Winslow Anderson, who introduced artful, fanciful and modern vessels and objects in vibrant colors. This began what collectors refer to as Blenko’s “historic period.” A number of Anderson’s designs were honored by the Museum of Modern Art’s Good Design Awards in 1950, and throughout the 1950’s and ‘60s, the company enjoyed robust sales and critical acclaim. The forms Blenko produced during this period followed the contemporary vogue for biomorphism, or organic modernism, which favored rounded and fluid shapes inspired by nature.
One of Blenko’s most influential designers, Wayne Husted, who was active from 1953 to ’63, is credited with aligning Blenko’s products with the prevailing mid-century modern aesthetic by pushing the envelope on both form and color, particularly in his wedge-cut and Spool decanters and his Echoes series. Joel Philip Myers, who designed for Blenko in the 1960s, brought a sense of whimsy and visual excess to the product line, in keeping with the psychedelic look favored during the period.
Blenko Glass still produces many of its classic designs in items ranging from stemware and tableware to decorative objects and ornamental decanters. Among collectors, pieces created under Husted’s creative direction are of special interest. The company has come to the attention of younger audiences through the documentaries Blenko: Hearts of Glass and Blenko Retro: Three Designers of American Glass, both of which aired on PBS. Blenko also designed the glass award trophy for the Country Music Awards.
- Pair of Victorian Cherub BookendsLocated in Redding, CTPair of Cherub bookends. Made of black metal and of the Victorian time period. Price is for the pair.Category
Antique 1880s American Victorian More Desk Accessories
MaterialsMetal
$200 Sale Price20% Off - Pair of Hammered Brass Arts and Crafts Bookends by FrostBy FrostLocated in Redding, CTPair of hammered brass Arts and Crafts bookends by Frost . The perfect addition to an Arts and crafts library. Copper plated brass. Green felt ...Category
Antique Early 1900s Arts and Crafts More Desk Accessories
MaterialsBrass, Copper
$234 Sale Price48% Off - Pair of Mid-Century Modern Walnut and Enamel Bookends by Ernest JohnLocated in Redding, CTPair of Mid-Century Modern walnut and enamel bookends. Signed by Ernest John. The perfect accessory to a mid century office. Colorful and vibrant. These can parcel ship for $29 domes...Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Mid-Century Modern More Desk Accessories
MaterialsCopper, Enamel
$370 Sale Price43% Off - Pair of Chrome and Smoked Glass ÉtagèresBy Milo BaughmanLocated in Redding, CTPrice is for the pair. Pair of chrome and smoked glass étagères. Five shelves each or 10 shelves total for display or storage. Sleek and sexy the...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Shelves
MaterialsChrome
$2,600 / item - Pair of Swivel Brass and Glass End TablesBy Milo BaughmanLocated in Redding, CTPair of Swivel brass and glass end tables. Retro three tier side tables that can expand to be wider. Price is for the pair of 2 total. White glove is recommended for these table. Pa...Category
Vintage 1970s Mid-Century Modern End Tables
MaterialsBrass
$2,240 Sale Price / item20% Off - Pair of Extendable Three Tier Brass and Smoked Glass TablesBy Milo BaughmanLocated in Redding, CTPair of extendable three tier brass and smoked glass tables. Geometric traingular shape. Matching coffee table also available. Post modern 1980's desi...Category
Vintage 1980s Mid-Century Modern End Tables
MaterialsBrass
$2,265 Sale Price / set35% Off
- Blenko Glass Shell BookendsBy Blenko GlassLocated in New York, NY1970s Blenko glass clear glass shell bookends.Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern More Desk Accessories
MaterialsGlass
$495 / set - 1960s CAT Art Glass Ice Block Paperweight Bookend Blenko WVBy Blenko GlassLocated in Chula Vista, CAPaperweight Modernist cat art glass ice block handcraft paperweight - bookend 1960s Attribution Blenko WV. Unmarked. 3.5 w x 3.25h x .88d inches Original...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Paperweights
MaterialsArt Glass
- Vintage Midcentury Glass Owl Bookends by BlenkoBy Blenko GlassLocated in San Diego, CABeautiful pair of midcentury glass owl bookends by Blenko from the 1960s with original signature seal sticker. Incredible craftsmanship and detail in this pair of glass bookends that...Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Animal Sculptures
MaterialsBlown Glass
- Vintage Midcentury Glass Owl Bookends by BlenkoBy Blenko Glass, Jonathan Adler, RosenthalLocated in San Diego, CABeautiful pair of midcentury glass owl bookends by Blenko from the 1960s. Incredible craftsmanship and detail in this pair of glass bookends that can adapt to your style as sculpture...Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Animal Sculptures
MaterialsBlown Glass
- American Midcentury Textured Glass Owl Bookends by BlenkoBy Blenko GlassLocated in San Diego, CABeautiful pair of midcentury glass owl bookends by Blenko from the 1960s. Incredible craftsmanship and detail in this pair of glass bookends that can adapt to your style as sculpture...Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Animal Sculptures
MaterialsBlown Glass
- Modern Blenko Glass Owl BookendsBy Joel MyersLocated in Cathedral City, CA1960s Modern Blenko glass owl bookends Joel Myers, USA.Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Bookends
MaterialsArt Glass