Vintage Finds this Week (01-28-2012)

We've had some great luck thrifting and rummaging for vintage recently. Here are some of our recent finds.

Some of these are already available on our Etsy shop, and some should be available soon.

Aldo Londi Vase

Aldo Londi Vase

First off, we found this wonderful Aldo Londi vase. Orange, green and gold with gold flowers. We couldn't believe it ourselves when we saw it on the shelf. It had to be be cracked or broken. But no. It's in gorgeous condition. Some days it's just better to be lucky than good.

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"Arden" by Turi Gramstad Oliver for Figgjo

"Arden" by Turi Gramstad Oliver - Turi Designs - for Figgjo

Found a treasure trove of vintage Figgjo ceramics by Turi Gramstad Oliver. These are from the "Arden" collection.

Figgjo AS is a Norwegian ceramics manufacturer located in Sandnes, Norway.

The Figgjo of today actually started out as two different cermaics companies; Stavangerflit AS and Figgjo AS. In 1968 the two companies merged into Figgjo Ceramics - Stavangerflint AS. Then, in 1979, the Stavangerflint portion closed and all manufacturing was consolidated into the Figgjo group. The company is now known only as Figgjo AS and its main focus is ceramics for the catering industry where it is regarded as a world leader in that segment.[1]

Available on our Etsy site.

"Arden" Soup Tureen by Turi Gramstad Oliver, Turi Designs for Figgjo Fajanse, Norway
SOLD

"Arden" Butter Box by Turi Gramstad Oliver, Turi Designs for Figgjo Fajanse, Norway
SOLD

"Arden" Cream & Sugar by Turi Gramstad Oliver, Turi Designs for Figgjo Fajanse, Norway
SOLD

"Arden" Jam/Jelly Bowl by Turi Gramstad Oliver, Turi Designs for Figgjo Fajanse, Norway
SOLD

"Arden" Pitcher by Turi Gramstad Oliver, Turi Designs for Figgjo Fajanse, Norway
SOLD

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Stavangerflint Box by Kari Nyquist, ca. 1950s

Kari Nyquist designed "Blue Series" Box for Stavangerflint

Wonderful Norwegian ceramic box designed by Kari Nyquist for Stavangerflint. From the Blå Serier (Blue Series), this box depicts a young man in his sulky, wearing his finery, top hat and all. Perhaps he is heading to meet his true love. The design is beautiful with a classic Norwegian feel. Backstamp is "Stavangerflint - Norway" with the signature "Kari" underneath.

Kari Nyquist was born in Oslo and studied ceramics at The Norwegian College of Applied Arts. She worked and trained in the workshops of noted ceramicists Eilif Whist and William Knutzen.  In 1942 she started her own workshop. From 1955 she worked as freelance artist and designer at Stavangerflint. Her designs were most often reproduced in a blue color on a blue background and made from blue clay or as stoneware.

A Kari Nyquist tea set from the mid 1950s is represented at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. She has held several exhibitions in Norway and abroad and has pieces at The National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design in Oslo.

This box is in perfect condition with no chips, cracks or scratches. The design shows no signs of wear and the interior is clean with no blemishes.

Available on our Etsy site.

SOLD

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[1] Information based on the English translations of the Figgjo AS site (http://figgjo.no/en/figgjo/article/view/about-figgjo/history) and a Stavangerflint blog about Inger Waage (http://stavangerflint.gratisnettside.no/?&mid=44)

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Rosenthal-Netter Italian Ceramic Bowl

What an awesome find!!

We just ran across this amazing, mid-centrury, Italian ceramic bowl, and it turns out it is a Rosenthal-Netter commissioned bowl from the early '60's. Not sure if it was made for Rosenthal-Netter by Bitossi or a different Italian ceramics firm from that time period.

On the bottom, the bowl is marked, "Italy" with a stylized "T" that crosses over most of the word. There is also a marking of "49/6B". The bowl does not have the original Rosenthal-Netter sticker on it, but we have seen the same style bowl, with the same stylized "Italy" and "49/6B", and a vase of the same pattern, both with the "Created in Italy for Rosenthal-Netter, Inc." tag. Based on what we have seen, we are confident that this is indeed a Rosenthal-Netter piece.

Italian ceramics from the '50's and '60's are, at times, difficult, if not impossible, to identify correctly without the labels. Even with the labels, the maker or designer of a piece may not be stated.

There does seem to be some confusion, though, about Rosenthal-Netter, another company called Raymor, and Italian pottery from the '50's and '60's. Many people think that Rosenthal-Netter and Raymor created ceramic pieces. They did not. They were US importers of Italian ceramic items.

Both Rosenthal-Netter and Raymor imported pieces from Bitossi and other Italian ceramics makers. In addition to commissioning some special pieces, they also bid for stock pieces. Because of this, some pieces imported by Rosenthal-Netter can look very similar to pieces imported by Raymor.

Another area of confusion is with the Italian makers themselves, notably, Bitossi.

Often times people refer to Bitossi as a designer, but Bitossi was a manufacturer of ceramics. The head designer at Bitossi during the '50's and '60's was Aldo Londi. Of course, not all Bitossi pieces were designed by Aldo Londi so a Bitossi piece may not be an Aldo Londi piece.

Confusing? You bet.

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