SUPER FISH GRAAL

Data: Signed; Orrefors 37 Sweden Graal nr 96 Edward Hald. Height; 19.7cm. Motif; Fish and seaweed in various tones of green. 

Exhibited: (i) Orrefors Showrooms in Malmö 1985, (ii) Depicted in "Orrefors Presents The Andre Laszlo Jr. Collection” & (iii) Full page photo in "Svenskt Konstglas” 1991, pp 58.

Provenance: This piece was purchased through an advertisement. 

The piece. This is probably the most attractive Fishgraal ever made. The shape, size, mass, and the wonderful way the fish truly swim makes this vase stand out not only from its relatives but also from its contemporaries. The Fishgraal was eventually to freeze into the shapes of “drop” and “ball,” but this was made "long before that"; in the late 1930s, each Thick Graal was a unique piece of art, and just as 1939 was "the year of the Ariel," 1937 was "the year of the thick Graal." Thick Graals from this time should thus be seen as just that - Thick Graals - and not Fishgraals, which carry negative connotations of technical over-perfection and mass production. This piece shows fish that truly do swim.