VASE (BROWN BUBBLED) H738

After joining BODA in 1953, he immediately started working on a glass series with air bubbles.
This was inspired by the miscellaneous beer bottles he saw in a mountain village where he stayed during a bicycle trip as a student. Sawdust and potatoes are thrown into heated glass, and the evaporated gases create countless air bubbles.

Brown with air bubbles was one of the first colors released, along with green.
Bubble glass and the brown color (not the product color, but the beer bottle color) were unconventional at the time and were not accepted by craftsmen or retailers, so they were commercialized after great difficulty.

The appliqué part is embossed with a cow-like motif, which was also a technique he worked on from the early days.
Old glass bottles had the manufacturer's name and capacity embossed on the appliqué as a function, but Erik Höglund used this as decoration.

This model was designed in the late 1950s.
The cut signature is "H738".
*In 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 artist/designer in Sweden.
After studying sculpture at Konstfack in Stockholm, he began his career as a designer at BODA in 1953 and was actively involved with the company for approximately 20 years.

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

In 1957, he won the Lunning Prize, the most prestigious award in Nordic design, proving that his expression was "a part of Nordic design."
At 25, he was also the youngest recipient among distinguished past winners such as 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 swiftly transformed from a "maverick" into "the darling of the era."

His field of activity was not limited to glass; from the early 1960s, he created works combining wrought iron and glass, as well as woodworking pieces.
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 design in a wide range of fields, including furniture and household goods.
Throughout his life, he created paintings and bronze works and was involved in commissioned works such as church wall decorations, furnishings, interior design, and public monuments, expanding his creative activities into various fields.

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