COMPLIMENTARY COPY
VOL. 43, NO. 25 FRIDAY JUNE 22, 2012
Published Weekly By Joel Sater Publications www.antiquesandauctionnews.net
CAPTIVATED BY CRACKLE GLASS By Donald-Brian Johnson ou’ve seen the magic. The day is dreary. A stray sunbeam wends its way through a cloudy sky. It makes a perfunctory pass along your w i n d o w, illuminating a shelf filled with assorted glass bottles and vases. Then,
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Once the process is complete, crack lines, (“crackling”) remain. Because of the irregularity of the crackling,
output of richly-colored, oversized art glass vessels. Blenko was founded in the early 1920s by glass craftsman William John Blenko,
Blenko threecup mugs, “Blenko Blue”. $30 to $40 each.
without warning, a dazzling display of refracted light fills the room. And not just any light. Sometimes it’s red. Sometimes it’s orange. Sometimes it might be yellow - or green - or perhaps even blue. An entire rainbow is at your visual service, each ray cavorting in a myriad of patterns. All at once, that dreary day isn’t so dreary after all. The miracle has happened. And the miraclemaker? Crackle glass! Let’s Get Cracklin’! Home decorating schemes of the mid-twentieth century were often distinguished by at least one of these lustrous light-catchers. Although first produced in the 1930s, crackle glass proved particularly in vogue from the 1950s onward. The art form reached its zenith in the swinging 1960s, as fans of Mad Men and related retro flashbacks can attest. The lines of crackle glass were clean and uncluttered; the varied shapes captured and held interest. The colors, whether bold or clear, solids, shaded, or stark contrasts, made each piece the ideal complement to ultra-modern décor. Even the starkest postwar environment called out for a stimulating focal point. Cool and colorful crackle glass was on hand to unfussily provide it. Crackle glass comes in all varieties and price ranges, from dimestore dazzlers to expensive eyecatchers. The reaGurgle bottle, R a i n b o w #9761, bubble stopper. 8-1/2 inches high. $50 to $60.
son: crackle glass is a treatment, rather than a style. It’s pretty much adaptable to any type of sufficiently sturdy glass (even marbles can be “crackled” on the kitchen stove.) The “crackling” finish is created when a hot glass object is submerged in cold water; the abrupt temperature change cracks the glass. The object is then reheated, strengthening and smoothing the glass.
l i g h t shining on a crackle glass piece deflects on other surfaces in those ever-intriguing patterns. The result: Vase, Blenko #6833-LT, Lemon with Tangerine spiral trim. Joel Myers design, 1968. 10-1/4 inches high. $60 to $80.
who had arrived from London in the mid1890s. The market for handcrafted stained glass bottomed out when the Depression hit America in 1929, and Blenko w a s forced to seek o u t
up-to-the-minute stylishness, achieved with a minimum of effort. At first, crackle glass was almost always hand-made and m o u t h blown. Its popularity quickly led to l e s s expensive other molded revenue crackle glass, sources. The imported founder’s son, William H., knockcame up with the idea of offs of expanding glassware producpricey tion to include affordable domestic decorative housewares, designs. such as bottles T h e and vases. crackT h e l i n g was still compathere, even if originality ny’s previand attention to detail ous experwere not. tise with Because any glass stained glass manufacturer could utilize came in particthe crackling treatment, ularly handy almost every manufac- h e r e , turer did. While some l e a d companies, such as ing to Tiffin and vases, Imperial, only Fish B l e n k o . dabbled in crackle #5433, Amber, glass production, 10 inches high, others made it a spe- $100 to $125; #971 S Olive Green, 12-1/2 cialty. The most notable inches long, $50 to $60. crackle glass firms were located in West Virginia. Among them the development of the extensive were Pilgrim, Rainbow, Bischoff, color palette that contributed much Kanawha, Viking, and the kingpin to the Blenko reputation. of crackle glass manufacturers, Crackle glass first entered the Blenko. Blenko catalogs in 1946, although Brilliantly Blenko it had been produced in limited Originally known for architec- quantities before then. To attract tural stained glass, the Blenko the largest customer base, the same name has today becom synony- pieces were often released in both mous with the firm’s mid-century crackle and non-crackle finishes.
Although some manufacturers specialized in crackle glass miniatures, Blenko pieces were invariably full-sized (and t h e n some!). A n y Blenko miniatures w e r e usually miniv e r sions of regularscale releases. The heyday of Blenko crackle
glass was the 1950s and 1960s. During that time, the creations of three specific glass artisans contributed much to the Blenko reputation: Winslow Anderson. Blenko’s first full-time designer, Anderson was with the firm from 1947-1952. Trained as a ceramist, his awardwinning Blenko designs Viking patio light, 5 inches high. $25 to $35.
were noted for their “modern” shapes, (such as the bent-neck decanter), and vivid colors. He left the company for a design position with Lenox China. Since Lenox also owned Brice Glassware Company, Anderson was then able to apply his design skills to both mediums.
Wayne Husted. Blenko’s design director from 1952 until 1963, Husted was responsible for literally hundreds of the company’s designs during that period. Husted also designed and photographed the Blenko cata-
logs, which have become collectibles in their own right (and an invaluable means of authenticating Blenko designs). His postBlenko career included stints with Viking and Anchor Hocking. Husted is best known for the super-sized decanters and bottles that many associate with Blenko pitchers. #3750-L, 5-1/2 inches high, $30 to $40. #939, Winslow Anderson design, 1950, 14 inches high. $60 to $70.
the concept of Blenko crackle glass. Joel Philip Myers. Serving as Blenko’s design director from 1963 to 1970, Myers was also a skilled glass blower. Among his hallmarks at Blenko were the use of elongated forms, surface textures and applied glass spirals, twocolor designs, and airtwist stoppers. His later career included founding the Department of Glass at Illinois State University. A Glass Act Although ostensibly vessels with a function, (vases, decanters, bowls, pitchers, goblets, and the like), the overriding purpose of a crackle glass piece was decorative. Eventually, even use-specific crackle glass objects, such as pitchers, took on such an unwieldy scale that using them to actually pour anything proved impractical, if not downright impossible. These were intended as stand-alone, (and preferably, stand-alone empty), vessels. Filling a crackle glass vase with flowers, or a crackle glass decanter with beverage, only defeated the purpose. The additions not only deadened the color and play of light through the crackling, but also detracted from the design simplicity. Today’s crackle glass collectors have a wealth of options to choose from. Some collect a specific shape, a specific color, or a specific type of vessel. Others focus on the output of a particular company or artist. Many
more, however, simply “collect crackle glass”. Its diverse stylings, and interplay of light and color, continue to delight, decades after its introduction. Is that a break in the clouds? It is! Call out the crackle glass! Here comes the sun! (Continued on page 2)