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Glass Discussion & Research. NO IDENTIFICATION REQUESTS here please. => British & Irish Glass => Topic started by: brewster on June 11, 2012, 02:11:17 AM

Title: Blue Webb crystal bowl, very heavy
Post by: brewster on June 11, 2012, 02:11:17 AM
The bowl illustrated is 9cm high by 27cm across at the maximum. It is very heavy, weighing in at 2.77kg. It is marked with the Thomas Webb acid etched mark, which I now know dates it to c1950-1966.

Is this specimen from the 'Flair Collection' designed by David Hammond and Stan Eveson and introduced in January 1962, as described on page 302 of Hajdamach's 20th Century British Glass? The examples shown in plate 645 on that page look similar in their use of bubbles and partial colouring, and even the electric blue colour is similar.

Trevor

Title: Re: Blue Webb crystal bowl, very heavy
Post by: Paul S. on June 11, 2012, 09:16:11 AM
nice bowl Trevor, and they do indeed weigh a ton.       I have a similar one in amber, which if I can find it, will post a pic of later.        In the meantime, if you punch  'flair range' or 'Webb's flair range' into the Search facility, you will get quite a bit of related and interesting information on this range of controlled bubbled art glass from Webb.                   I would think yours is almost certainly a 'flair' item.
Title: Re: Blue Webb crystal bowl, very heavy
Post by: chopin-liszt on June 11, 2012, 09:24:04 AM
 ;)
I agree!
Title: Re: Blue Webb crystal bowl, very heavy
Post by: Paul S. on June 11, 2012, 11:11:30 AM
this amber one is something like 9.5"/245mm at the longest dimension, so a little smaller than the blue one  -  and I have seen them in other sizes.    Probably not something made to standard dimensions anyway.      They look as though they owe a lot to the Scandinavian 'free-formed' bowls of similar shape and, of course, the Whitefriars/Baxter pieces which were produced in the very early '60's.    I forget off-hand the manufacturing period for the flair range, but probably some time in the '60's also.       My own feeling is that these Webb pieces are still under valued - they're very arty in a refined sort of way. :)     
Title: Re: Blue Webb crystal bowl, very heavy
Post by: chopin-liszt on June 11, 2012, 11:26:40 AM
Some info. is in Hajdamach (20th century), p 302.
Flair was introduced in 1962, I don't know how long it ran for exactly - I can't find the bit I thought I'd read that said it stopped around '65.

It wasn't blown  to create vessels - a hot wet stick was stuck into the gob of glass to create the void - the steam from the wetness expanding it.
Title: Re: Blue Webb crystal bowl, very heavy
Post by: brewster on June 11, 2012, 11:43:09 PM
Thanks, Paul and Sue.

A confession. I now recall that several years ago I had seen the picture and description of Webb's Flair range in Nigel Benson's little book on '50s and '60s glass. I had doubted that the blue bowl was from the same range, mostly because of differences in shape and the extent and density of the colouring. I had not properly taken into account the variation that occurs within the range.

The other discussions on this board (indicated by Paul -- Why didn't I think of that?) show the extent of variation. The blue bowl is well within that range.

The other Webb item I posted in a separate thread appears not to be Flair. However, with its hole, its twisted ribbing and its single beak, it is perhaps an even more unusual item.

Trevor