Topic: Italian?? Vaseline & Cobalt Mid-Century piece Help ID Please

[TxSilver]

I looked through an Italian auction pamphlet yesterday that had several Seguso sommerso vases. One vase had a mouth and neck similar to this one, though the body was different. It made me re-think the possibility that the vase might be Seguso. I guess we should keep Murano on the table as a possibility for this one. Sommerso vases are always difficult for me.

[Lustrousstone]

I would with Murano too, not Scandinavia

[Andy]

I too am now thinking Flavio Poli Seguso, i keep seeing similar pieces here and there,
Millers glass guide , page 292, a cased vase, the top looks just the same.

Cheers
Andy
 

[langhaugh]

Andy:

In another thread about Archimede Seguso and sommerso, Gerard van Hienen made the point that all the Seguso pieces he had seen didn't have a clear layer added at the end. I checked the books I have (I don't have the Miller book you refer to) and that seems to be true of Poli, also. I did find a comment by Marino Barovier in the Olnick Spanu book  that said Poli designed a "series of sommerso glass pieces in a Nordic style--essential forms and sharp, cold colors." That explains the original debate about this piece.

I also finally remembered where I had seen these colours before. Try http://www.design-and-arts.com/images/products/00017_01.jpg. Unfortunately, it's not attributed, and the company do sell Poli and Cenedese pieces. However, the price will cheer you up, I hope. It's  Artikel Nr. 00017 at http://www.design-and-arts.com/de/show-products.php?category=19#51995.

David

[obscurities]

David,

In another thread about Archimede Seguso and sommerso, Gerard van Hienen made the point that all the Seguso pieces he had seen didn't have a clear layer added at the end. I checked the books I have (I don't have the Miller book you refer to) and that seems to be true of Poli, also. 

I have a huge piece of Sommerso which has a clear outer casing. The piece weighs just under 25 lbs. The internal colors are cobalt and cranberry.  I have had it for many years now. When I first got it I contacted several respected dealers and collectors around the country who confirmed that they believed it to be a Poli piece.   
http://www.glassmessages.com/index.php/topic,25821.0.html

As far as this Cobalt and Vaseline piece goes,
The image comes up, and the link to their site works, but I can not find the piece on their site. (I may have suffered a recent and severe case of brain death  :huh:)  I have also looked at their ebay listings....  Do you remember what type of price they showed on that piece?  The green is a little different, which could just be photography, but the feel of the piece is similar...... I must say that I looked yesterday, and again today and still could not find it, although there were a whole lot of changes to what glass was showing....   

Thanks, Craig

[langhaugh]

Craig:

Sorry about that link. I was having difficulty when I put the link on, and when I went back today it was impossible to navigate. They must be working on it. The price, if I remember correctly, was 240 euros.

I spent more time looking for Poli pieces and I think you're right about Poli also doing clear as well. That would have been  nice way of determining attribution but it's a bit simplistic for Poli. I also checked the thread you mentioned, Great piece you have! Also, I was interested in Jerry's post, where he said that it was difficult to determine attributions for sommerso, as everybody copied everybody else. I was in Italy, including Murano, last October, and there's still a huge number of sommerso pieces being made by a multiplicity of furnaces. I think your approach of contacting several respected dealers is probably the most valid way to determine attribution, possibly even if it does have a label.

My apologies again.

David

[obscurities]

David,

No need to apologize.  I figured they were doing something to the website when I went back this morning and everything had changed......  As far as 240 Euros goes....   :thup:,   I got it for just under $50 US ($35 Euros) with shipping.....  so 240 Euros (350 US), is fine with me....  Regardless of price, it is one of Peggy's favorites, so the only way it will ever leave the house, is if she leaves me and takes it with her!...  and she would have to fight me for it!!   

Craig

[Shelleys1]

If I might reply on this thread...

Seguso and Poli used this color combination fairly often. Their important Valva series combined the same two colors. Actually, the Valva series used both blue and red/dark pink and purple and red/dark pink. Here are some links where you can see a few of the color combinations:

http://www.christies.com/LotFinder/lot_details.aspx?pos=6&intObjectID=1933885&sid=

http://www.architonic.com/dcsht/valva-vase-wright/4107314

http://antiquehelper.rfcsystems.com/Full/775/67775.jpg

Seguso had many pieces, throughout the years, which floresced. For decades many of the glass furnaces in Murano used glass which contained magnesium (and probably some uranium as well). Cenedese used it quite extensively. I have a large Valva bowl - I've never used a blacklight on it but I should try sometime!

I do believe the piece you're discussing is a Seguso designed by Poli. The colors - how they're used and where they're used (the proportions) is practically a Poli signature. The shape and the opening was used by several houses (not totally identical but very close), Seguso being one of them. The other bottle, with the bright yellow below the blue, looks trademark Cenedese. I have a documented Cenedese vase with the same colors in the same proportions. It's in storage right now but the next time I get over there I'll bring it home, take a picture and post it.

Shell

[obscurities]

I have continued the search to identify this piece. I came across this image in an ebay auction. It is used here with the permission of the seller. The piece is attributed to Seguso in the auction, although I do not know if that is correct or not.  At least it brings me one step closer to identifying the piece, especially knowing now that it had a stopper originally.  This is the only other one I have ever seen....

With the stopper this piece measures 19 inches tall......  sure wish I had the stopper for mine...   

Craig

[chopin-liszt]

It does look a lot more Muranese with the stopper in it!