Large Vintage Glass Amberina Vase with Stopper by John Nickerson for Blenko
About the Item
- Creator:Blenko Glass (Manufacturer),John Nickerson (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 12.75 in (32.39 cm)Diameter: 9.9 in (25.15 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:ca. 1973
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Excellent, vintage condition with a slightly rough edge to the underside of the stopper (likely factory).
- Seller Location:Brooklyn, NY
- Reference Number:
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.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Brooklyn, NY
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 2 days of delivery.
- Blown Glass Amberina Tangerine Jug Designed by John Nickerson for BlenkoBy Blenko Glass, John NickersonLocated in Brooklyn, NYBlown glass jug designed by John Nickerson and manufactured by Blenko. This design first appeared in the 1972 Blenko catalog as model number 7226S. Large size and attractive amberina...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Bottles
MaterialsBlown Glass
- Vintage Geometric Amberina Pillar Vase Designed by Joel Myers for BlenkoBy Blenko GlassLocated in Brooklyn, NYImpressive, striking Joel Myers for Blenko pillar vase model 6949 first seen on the cover of the 1969 Blenko catalog. Scarcely seen amberina / ...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vases
MaterialsArt Glass
- Large Turquoise Blown Glass Asymmetrical "Ribbed" Vase by BlenkoBy Blenko GlassLocated in Brooklyn, NYAsymmetrical Blenko vase with ribbed pattern, large in scale (H: 11" x L: 8" x D: 4") in attractive turquoise palette. The design's first and only appearance was in the 1966 Blenko...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vases
MaterialsBlown Glass
- Large Blenko Blown Glass Turquoise Asymmetrical "Ribbed" VaseBy Blenko GlassLocated in Brooklyn, NYAsymmetrical Blenko vase with ribbed pattern, large in scale (H: 11.25" x L: 8" x D: 4.25") in attractive turquoise palette. The design's first and only appearance was in the 1966 B...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vases
MaterialsBlown Glass
- Vintage Bulbous-Form Light Green Demijohn with Cork StopperLocated in Brooklyn, NYPale green demijohn/carboy originally used for transporting wine (ca. Early 20th Century, France). Composed of 'blown-to-mold' glass (a method accepted ...Category
Early 20th Century French French Provincial Bottles
MaterialsGlass, Cork
- Large Mid-Century Modern Glass Vase by Tapio WirkkalaBy Rosenthal, Tapio WirkkalaLocated in Brooklyn, NYImpressive, statuesque glass vase by Finnish designer, Tapio Wirkkala, for Rosenthal Studio-Line of Germany. Composed of thick glass sculpted to look like ice. Largest example manufa...Category
Vintage 1960s German Scandinavian Modern Vases
MaterialsGlass
- Lidded Glass Jar Designed by John Nickerson for BlenkoBy John Nickerson, Blenko GlassLocated in New York, NYNice lidded vessel in blue crackle glass designed by John Nickerson, produced by Blenko. This example is in perfect condition, it is an uncommon blu...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Jars
MaterialsArt Glass
- Blenko Attributed Large Amberina Ombre Art Glass VaseBy Blenko GlassLocated in Bishop's Stortford, HertfordshireA very fine, stylish and unusual mid-century mallet shaped art glass vase in amberina orange and red glass. The vase has a pepper rounded gourd shape body with molded ribbing running...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vases
MaterialsBlown Glass
- Large blue Blenko glass bottle with stopperBy Blenko GlassLocated in Ferndale, MILarge blue body bottle with stopper . Bottle measures 19.5 tall add 5.5" for stopper diameter 8.75" . William Blenko started a sheet glass company in 1921, in Milton, West Virgi...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vases
MaterialsGlass
- Large Green Blenko Glass Bottle with StopperBy Blenko GlassLocated in Ferndale, MIWilliam Blenko started a sheet glass company in 1921, in Milton, West Virginia because of low natural gas prices, a major concern for glass manufacturers of the time, which drew m...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vases
MaterialsArt Glass
- Large Blenko Red Blown Art Glass Vase Vessel Jug with StopperBy Blenko GlassLocated in Philadelphia, PALarge Blenko red blown Art Glass vase vessel jug with stopper. Circa 1960s. Measurements: 23.5" height x 9" diameter.Category
Vintage 1960s Mid-Century Modern Vases
MaterialsGlass
- Large Blenko Amberina Red and Yellow Ribbed VaseBy Blenko GlassLocated in East Quogue, NYGorgeous mid-century modern large oversized Blenko Amberina hand-blown ribbed vase/vessel. A deep red neck that subtly transitions into a pale yellow ...Category
Vintage 1960s American Modern Vases
MaterialsGlass