Twentieth century glass 

Galle jug circa 1910

Towards the end of the nineteenth century, with the Art Nouveaux period, the production of fine glass was reaching its peak. Where the regency period excelled in fine cut glass the late Victorian period was renowned for its art glass which used colour and form to achieve beauty and elegance often with the addition of metal mounts the emphasis being on craftsmanship and individual design. This style continued into the early part of the twentieth century and some wonderful pieces of glass were created at this time. 

After World War I there emerged a change in fashion with the complexity of earlier design making way for simpler and plainer styles as a break away from the beliefs of the Victorian period began. Designs were more geometric often abstract with the influence of cubism and whilst this was generally put to great artistic use some of the designs could be a little cold and stark. Industrial production techniques were improving and electricity was playing a greater part in these methods as well as new materials being available to designers such as early plastics which could be formed in different ways from other materials helping to change the ways in which designers thought. Buildings as well were following the style of clean lines with greater use of glass and concrete widening the possibilities for the designer and allowing greater scale.  

jug designed by Dr C. Dresser circa 1880

The idea of an industrial design was not entirely new however. In the second half of the nineteenth century the renowned designer Dr. Christopher Dresser was responsible for designs of which many were very forward thinking and would not have looked out of place in the Art Deco period. Some of the more modern looking pieces were not good sellers at the time and are now very rare and sought after. Dresser believed that industrial technique could be used to produce interesting and unusual designs that were more affordable than individually made pieces and that the materials used should be pure so that its beauty was emphasised. 

Galle elephant vase circa 1905

In France the Art Nouveaux designs merged more gently into the Art Deco with the continuity of works by Galle being a conglomeration of the two styles incorporating natural themes with geometric shapes. Lalique was producing good quality pressed glass including the popular car mascots as well as lamp shades, vases and bowls etc. Daum was making cameo cut pieces with Deco motifs in coloured glass. A number of glass artist were experimenting with the use of pate-de-verre where ground glass paste was fired to form vases and bowls which were often quite large with little decoration other than colour to adorn them. 

Orefors bowl circa 1936

In Scandinavia some interesting and distinctive designs were being made with simple form being decorated with fine engraving. Often the engraving had an almost dreamlike quality with figures set in magical scenes. Many pieces were undecorated other than sparing use of coloured glass encased by the clear metal or the inclusion of bubbles in the form to create the illusion of liquid. Certainly these designs were very good at showing the natural beauty of the raw material and complimented room settings of the period. 

glass teapot designed by Wilhelm Wagenfeld circa 1935

The Bauhaus in Germany was producing designs of simple form with Wilhelm Wagenfeld being one of the major contributors in the field of glass. He produced designs for Jenaer and Vereinigte Lausitzer glassworks as well as for WMF for whom he produced some utilitarian wares. The Wiener Werkstatte was founded in Austria in 1903 by Joseph Hoffmann and Koloman Moser. Here the designs were very modern being among the earlier producers of the geometric style of the Art Deco period. Also based in Vienna was the Lobmeyr factory and in 1910 Joseph Hoffman became their art director with many deigns coming from the same pens as those from the Wiener Werksatte. 

Paolo Vanini chandelier circa 1930

The Italians took a little longer to embrace the modern style producing traditional wares until in 1921 Paolo Vanini and Giacomo Cappallin got together and entered in to the glass industry. They saw an opening for truly modern Italian glass and employed Vittorrio Zecchin as art director. The skills of the traditional glass makers were put to good use and less ornate pieces were produced in-keeping with the Art Deco period. In 1925 Vanini broke away and started producing more experimental wares along side traditional pieces and is responsible for a number of new techniques of production including “vetro battute” which imitated hammered metal “vetro pulegoso” bubbled glass where the bubble actually broke the surface giving a lively pitted effect. Another Italian firm was that of Barovier who produced Deco glass ware throughout the 1920s and introduced some new techniques such as “Primavera” glass which was thin walled with heavy handles and mimicked cracked ice. They also produced figures and chunky vases and bowls in the 1930s. 

Berovier elephants circa 1935

Art Nouveaux style glass continued to be produced in America in to the 1920s until the demand reduced to the point of causing the closure of a number of factories. This included the well known carnival glass which was often given as prizes on stalls in fairs. They were slow to take on the new style and few individually designed pieces of Deco glass were made in America at this time. The American tradition of producing inexpensive moulded wares continued and these remained popular with the public as new designs could be made fairly quickly to suit changing fashion. A number of quite innovative designs were made in accordance with Deco style including the “Ruba Rombic” range which was multi angular and available in a number of different colours.  

Steuben lamp circa 1915

A notable exception was the Steuben Glass Works in New York who employed Frederick Carder as adviser and although he was not keen on the Art Deco style he could see that it was important to produce representative wares. In the 1930s a number of artists were employed to produce contemporary designs including sculptors and famous Europeans such as Salvador Dali and Henri Matisse. 

Steuben vase designed by Fred Carder circa 1930

Also noteworthy was A. Douglas Nash who had worked for Tiffany until 1928 when he decided to go it alone and started to produce a good quality Art Deco range. Unfortunately his innovative wares were not able to hold off the depression and he went out of business shortly afterwards in 1931. He then went on to produce some extraordinary designs for Libby Glass in Toledo, Ohio. 

Keith Murray vase circa 1935

In Britain the firm of Jobling and Co. of Sunderland was producing pressed glass in the manner of Lalique but generally nothing particularly imaginative or innovative was being done in the glass industry until the Midlands firm of Stevens and Williams employed the New Zeeland architect Keith Murray to produce some designs for them. His creations were mostly of geometric shape with little in the way of ornamentation other than parallel cutting and fluting although he also produced engraved designs which were similar to those on Scandinavian glass of the period. Murray also designed for James Powell in the glass industry as well as producing some ceramic designs for Wedgwood and in silver and plate for Mappin and Webb and although mostly the designs weren’t as striking as say those from France they had an architectural elegance which fitted in with the buildings of the day and look equally good in the modern minimalist home.  

Whistler goblets circa 1960

Probably the most notable worker with glass in Britain was Laurence Whistler (1912-2000) the stipple engraver who produced some stunning scenes. He was brother of the artist Rex Whistler and was also a poet.  He often however tended to work on older glassware as it was of a softer and not always completely clear metal though he did some excellent engraving on plate glass including the windows of St. Nicholas’ Church in Moreton Dorset where Laurence of Arabia is buried. His use of light and the depictions in three dimensions on a curved surface to my mind are unsurpassed being emphasised by his use of words to describe them. He lost both his brother and wife in 1944 later writing of his wife. 

"How unlikely it was, as she had said, that we should have found one another "in such a crowd". The war came, and there were still five years. Perhaps one should see life as a bonus always? If one deserves nothing, ought one to expect anything? It would certainly be gay if this notion could be sustained. Compared with some we were patently unlucky. But compared with others? — those, for instance, who had travelled across Europe, waterless, in cattle-trucks . . . All human comparisons are meaningless. There is only luck. And luck is always unique, with its never-repeated, its unrepeatable, challenge"........

Venini bowl circa 1955

After World War II there was a movement towards more organic shapes in glassware shifting away from the straight lines and symmetry of the first half of the century. The use of coloured glass was widespread with the forms being often quite chunky though obviously evolving from glass of the 1930s period. The designs experimented greatly with abstract ornamentation which has on occasion been taken to the extreme.