Topic: ART GLASS VASE MDINA?

[Weebeeglass]

Hello all you avid's
Afraid this message fom Paul was found in my junk mail box and I just got around to checking 'just in case'!

Anyway before you all find yourselves in danger of becoming anoraks - heaven forbid (!!) I will add some more fuel.
Definately NOT any kind of experimental or trial as it would be correctly known - and certainly NOT from Michaels hand or anyone else from the studio come to that. Afraid that if it had a piece such as this would be grabbed by Mike and the perpetrator would be left to pick up the sharp pieces between his toes one at a time whilst hopping across the broken bits to dispose of them in the farthest bin !
Sorry if that sounds a bit strong but trust I make my point !!

Now the oddity is that in terms of producton it is clearly a mold blown piece. Hence the gold leaf spreading right around the base showing that it could not have been transferred to or held on a pontil iron. This was seldom employed by IoWSG except in some early Golden Peacock items from the late'ish eighties where an oval section vase was in the range. There have been a few  others.
Now the odd part is that it is very difficult to add a lip strap, (the trailing around the rim) which is usually a method employed to finish the edge which is scored and cracked off the blowing iron, unless it IS held on a pontil iron.
So my guess is that whoever made this copycat abomination of Michaels iconic Azurene process has cracked it off, stood it on the marver, heated the rim with a torch and then tried to make a half decent job of adding a lip strap to finish it. Unfortunartely he has failed miserably as it should be  done in such a way that you would not know it was there unless you knew about glass production.
So just one of the many who tried, and failed, to cash in on the process which was the case particularly in the eighties when we used to take them to task quite severly to the point where they seldom, except under penalty of death OR WORSE, persued it farther.!
Anway hope that puts this one to bed as my soap box has just crumbled under the weight of heavy words.

Glad you all have the passion which has consumed my every waking hour for the past 30 odd years. All strength to you.
Best regards,
Ron 

[PAUL H]

Thanks Ron.. I'm gutted  no not really.. its obvious to me now that its not up to Michaels standard but its quite interesting in its own right. It could be a studio piece or maybe a art college students experiment. Saw your stand at the glass fair and must say how impressed I was. Paul

[Weebeeglass]

Hi Paul,

Nuff said then ?!!

Glad you liked our stand. Make yourself known any other time you see us.

Look on our website under 'Fair Dates'  www.ArtiusGlasss.co.uk

Add your email address or advise us direct (Wheeler.Ron(AT)talktalk.net - change (AT) to @ to make address viable) to be added to our Collectors Mailing Group.
Regards,
Ron  Ann


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[PAUL H]

Will do Ron and thanks for your help. Paul

[MarkHill]

Hi,
I'm not 100% sure about this piece. I'm about 70% FOR Mdina during the 1980s, when they also produced a range of, usually, blue glass with applied gold foil. Of course, I would imagine they did this after seeing the success of Michael's globally popular Azurene range.
The colour tone seems right for Mdina at this time, and I have seen a few vases (Side Stripe, Onion and Lollipop) like this one and the one on eBay with Mdina inscribed marks or labels.
What puts me off is the fact the foil goes under the base, as Ron says, and also the applied colourless rim. I'm yet to see a piece of Mdina from this range with an applied rim like this. However, Side Stripe vases have applied trails to two sides in colourless glass, so it's not a stretch of the imagination to see that a glassmaker may have tried applying a rim to a cylinder vase one day to see what it looked like.
Incidentally, I don't think it's Charlie Meaker, as the blue is completely wrong compared to the examples I've seen before.
Is the jury still out?
Mark

[PAUL H]

Mark thanks for your input, I am surprised that this vase has caused so much debate. I would of course love it to be Mdina and as you rightly point out the colours are right but that applied clear glass rim keeps me thinking that its maybe a trial piece that didn't quite work out or an apprentice piece by another glass studio. It was nice to meet you in person (Mark) at the glass fair earlier this month and once again thanks for your help and advice. Paul

[MarkHill]

No problem! Great to meet you too :-)
Good luck with the website,
Mark