VASE (BLUE BUBBLED) H981

This series of glass with air bubbles was something he started working on immediately after joining BODA in 1953.
He was inspired by the jumbled beer bottles he saw in a mountain village he stayed in during a bicycle trip in his student days. Sawdust and potatoes were thrown into heated glass, and the evaporating gases created countless bubbles.

The appliqué parts are embossed with face-like motifs, a technique he also worked on from early on.
Old glass bottles had the manufacturer's name or capacity embossed on the appliqué for functional purposes, but Erik Höglund used this as decoration.

This model was designed in 1963, and the blue bubbled glass was added to the variation in 1960.
The cut signature is "H981/270".
A ship's mark is engraved by sandblasting, and it is presumed to have been manufactured as some kind of commemorative item. Commemorative items are rarely seen in ashtrays, but this is the first individual piece seen outside of an ashtray.
*Good condition with no noticeable damage.
*Our store issues certificates of authenticity based on our accumulated experience.

ERIK HÖGLUND｜1932-1998｜SWEDEN
Erik Höglund was a leading Swedish artist and designer.
After studying sculpture at Konstfack in Stockholm, he began his career as a designer at BODA in 1953 and worked there energetically for about 20 years.

Inspired by various traditions and indigenous cultures, he actively incorporated bubbles and distortions not as flaws but as part of the expression, pursuing forms that conveyed a sense of human touch.
His unique worldview, which elevated the primitive to the modern, brought new possibilities of expression to glass art.
His unconventional style initially caused controversy, but his unwavering passion for creation and tireless efforts built trust.

In 1957, he received the Lunning Prize, the most prestigious award in Nordic design, proving that his expression was "one of the Nordic designs."
At 25, he was the youngest recipient among the illustrious past winners, including Hans J. Wegner, Tapio Wirkkala, Kaj Franck, and Timo Sarpaneva.
In the same year, he won a silver medal at the Milan Triennale, solidifying his international reputation and marking a turning point in his career as a designer, as he quickly rose from "maverick" to "darling of the era."

His activities were not limited to glass; from the early 1960s, he created works combining forged iron and glass, as well as woodcrafts.
In 1968, he established the design company "Backström & Höglund AB" with Monica Backström, also a designer at Boda and his partner at the time, and worked on designs in a wide range of fields, including furniture and household goods.
Throughout his life, he created paintings and bronze works, and was involved in commission work such as church wall decorations and furnishings, interior design, and public monuments, engaging in creative activities in various fields.

The artist in the glass factory who appears in the film "Mitt liv som hund (My Life as a Dog)" by master Swedish director Lasse Hallström is based on Erik Höglund, and the film depicts him before he gained recognition.