Topic: Big Sommerso vase red cased in Neodymium glass - Seguso VdA?

[rocco]

My favourite buy from the last months: massive Sommerso vase of 7 kg, red cased in Neodymium.
My pics don't do it justice -- the very thick glass reflects and distorts heavily...

Flat polished base with perfectly rounded edge, similar to my Flavio Poli vase.

I would think Seguso vetri d'arte and Mario Pinzoni as designer (the features and overall design would fit), but unfortunately the exact design is not in the book. Which may mean it just isn't featured in the book (many patterns are missing in the catalogue section). Or it could be made after 1973. Or it isn't Seguso after all...

Antonio da Ros for Cenedese liked this colour combo as well, but the shape looks more like Seguso in my eyes.
Or other ideas?

Thanks!
Michael

[glassobsessed]

Wow, that is dangerously heavy, how big is it? Something that heavy takes strength as well as skill to make. Remarkable.

I would agree that SVdA looks right, only had a quick flick through the book before posting, hard to choose between the two designers in terms of style for your vase but would tend to agree with Pinzoni as more likely. I ran into the same problem with this vase (not in Marc Heiremans book either):
http://www.glassmessages.com/index.php/topic,60009.0.html
 
In the dating section on pages 316/7 your colour combination is given the name Rubino - Violetto and a date of 1961. From memory I don't think Marc Heiremans specifies if this was the year of introduction of a given colour combination or the only year it was in use.

John

[rocco]

Hi John,
thanks a lot!

Yes -- I didn't dare to turn it around to take a base pic because of the weight
Particularly as the top section is fairly thin glass -- another feature which leads me towards Seguso and Pinzoni.
I will submit the correct measures tomorrow, but it is not that big (appr. 20 cm height, 24 cm diameter; I don't know if that was clear in my pic, but the cross section is circular, not flattened like in many Poli pieces).

As far as I remember (I don't have the book at hand atm) the date in the colourway section of the book indicates when this colourway was introduced. No mention when it was discontinued...

I found 3 possible colour combos mentioned which could apply, different shades of red cased in amethyst, though the one you mentioned seems to be the likeliest.

BTW, it looks very nice in fluorescent light as well, when the colour of the casing turns to turquoise

I like your small Sommerso vase, and style wise it would certainly fit in with Pinzoni (apart from the bottom heavy pieces with hotworked thin rim, there are quite a few in the book with thick glass and cut top).

Did you find this colourway in the book? -The colours look quite distinctive, not the usual medium green cased in amber more often seen.

Michael

[glassobsessed]

Fashion has it's influence especially in the colours that were used year on year and those colours kept changing. It is not so much that a combination was never used again but that change is important in stimulating sales and to a degree to 'keep things fresh'.

I had that vase quite a few years ago now, as far as I remember I did not positively find those colours in a photograph, may have where they are described but without a visual match it was hard to be sure.

[rocco]

Thanks John!

Yes I agree it is difficult to judge how those many colour combinations in the Heiremans book look like without a pic (as I mentioned above, I found three different "red cased in amethyst" versions which could apply to my vase...)

Here is a vase similar to mine: https://www.cambiaste.com/uk/auction-0440/f-poli-seguso-vetri-darte-murano-1950-ca-1-203172
Shape looks very Seguso vdA (I haven't checked the book though).

edit:
meanwhile I measured my vase, and it is quite a bit smaller than I thought - 22 cm high, 20 cm diameter.

Michael