Description:
An exceptional ‘Vase im Holzgestell’, created around 1900 for the Viennese firm E. Bakalowits Söhne. The pale green iridescent glass vase was executed by Johann Loetz Witwe in the subtle Olympia décor and rests within a sculptural wooden mount. The strongly ribbed glass form, with its undulating rim, evokes an opening flower bud and forms a harmonious whole with the organically curved lines of the wooden stand.
The glass form is attributed in historical documentation to Josef Hoffmann (1870–1956) and is recorded under production number 85/1135 from 1899. The design belongs to the remarkable series of Vasen in Holzgestellen presented at the VIII Exhibition of the Vienna Secession. In a surviving period photograph, this model can be seen prominently positioned at the centre of the presentation.
The Viennese Loetz specialist Dr. Ernst Ploil, however, has drawn attention to the distinctly floral and early Secessionist vocabulary of the wooden mount, which, in his opinion, relates more closely to the work of Koloman Moser (1868–1918) than to Hoffmann’s designs from this period. It is therefore plausible that the object resulted from an artistic collaboration: a glass form designed by Hoffmann combined with a wooden mount attributed to Moser, executed for Bakalowits.
The art-historical significance of the design is further underscored by identical glass forms preserved in important museum collections: an example in Luna décor is held by the Leopold Museum in Vienna, while an example in Syrius décor forms part of the collection of the Neue Galerie New York.
The combination of Hoffmann’s documented glass design, the mount attributed to Moser, Loetz’s innovative glass and its historic presentation at the Vienna Secession makes this vase a remarkable document of avant-garde Viennese design around 1900.
Price: On request.
Interested in this object? Please click here to send us a message using the contact form.
