Orrefors My Heart Votive, 3 5 inch

Amazon.Comorrefors Puts A Modern Slant On The Heart, Literally, With The My Heart Collection. The Top Of This Lead-Free Crystal Votive Forms A Heart Shape That Angles Toward The Viewer As If To Say, I Love You. At 3-1/2 Inches In Diameter, The Solid, Heavy Sculpture Adorns A Dresser, Vanity, Or Coffee Table, And Makes A Perfect Gift For ValentineS Day, MotherS Or FatherS Day, Or Any Anniversary. A True Work Of Art, The My Heart Votive Is Handcrafted By Master Glassmakers At The Orrefors Glassworks In Sweden.Designed And Playfully Named By Renowned Swedish Artist Lars Hellsten, Whose DaughterS Name Is My, The My Heart Collection Includes Thick, Columnar Candlesticks, Delicate Vases, And A Bowl, Desk Clock, And Votive, All Of Which Are Heart-Shaped Without Being Overly Sentimental. Each Piece Comes Gift-Ready In A Handsome Orrefors Box, And Should Be Washed By Hand To Preserve Its Brilliance. --Ann Bierifrom The Manufacturerabout The Designer:Born In 1933, Lars Hellsten Studied Sculpture At The College Of Arts, Crafts And Design In Stockholm Before Coming To Orrefors In 1972. Besides Eden, A Service Inspired By Nature, He Is Also The Designer Behind Such Collections As Corona, Odyssey, Neptunus, And The Heart-Shaped Amour And My Heart. Nature Clearly Inspires His Art Glass, Too, Including Many Grand Pieces Well Suited To Public Spaces. His Glass Is Characteristically Massive And Forceful, Whether It Be Cast, Mold-Blown, Or Free-Blown. He Celebrated His 70Th Birthday And More Than 30 Years At Orrefors With A Large Retrospective Exhibition At The Orrefors Exhibition Hall Between May And September, 2003.About The Kosta Boda:With Characteristic Craftsmanship And Good Design, Kosta Boda Has Become One Of The Leading Glasshouses In The World. The CompanyS Three Glassworks In The Villages Of Kosta, Boda, And Fors Each Have Exciting Individual Stories Of Their Own Yet Stand Together Under The Common Brand Name Kosta Boda. The Corps Of Designers Currently On Retainer At Kosta Boda Works With Both Utilitarian And Art Glass.Glass Results From A Great Many Meetings Between People--Artists, Craftspeople, And Lovers Of Glass. The Artists Of Kosta Boda Have A Decisive Role To Play In All The Creative Stages Of The Process. The Cooperation Between The Designers And The Skilled Craftspeople Is Very Close; Indeed, It Is Essential If The Designers Are To Transfer Their Intentions To The Glass.The History Of Kosta Boda:Kosta, The Parent Glassworks Of Kosta Boda And The Oldest Glassworks In Sweden Still In Operation, Has A Fascinating History That Forms A Valuable Part Of Swedish Cultural Heritage. The Glassworks Was Founded In 1742 By The Governors Of The Counties Of Kronoberg And Kalmar, Anders Koskull And Georg Bogislaus Stael Von Holstein, Both Former Generals In The Army Of Karl Xii And Distinguished Veterans Of The Battle Of Narva, Among Others. The Two County Governors Founded The Glassworks Upon The Instructions Of Fredrik I And Modeled It On Continental Glassworks. The Works Was Situated Deep In The Spruce Forests Of Smland, On A Site Midway Between The Two Country Towns, And Near A Village That Was Then Known As Dfvedshult. The Main Reason For Choosing This Location Was The Unlimited Availability Of Wood. Enormous Quantities Of Wood Were Naturally Required To Keep The Glassmaking Furnaces Burning Day And Night.Both Of The Founders Wanted Their Names To Be Remembered, So The Works Was Christened Kosta, From The Initial Letters--Ko And Sta--Of The Surnames Of Both The Carolinian Generals. After A Time The Entire Community Was Renamed After The Growing Glassworks.During The First 150 Years, The Glassworks In Kosta Produced Only Utility Glass, Including Window Glass For The Building Of TessinS Royal Palace, Bottles And Glass For The Royal Household, And Chandeliers For Churches. The First Glassblowers Were Immigrant Glass Masters From Bhmen. They Became The Founding Fathers Of The Glassblowing Families, Which Passed Down Craft Skills From Generation To Generation. Swedish Sand Was Used To Manufacture Crystal Glass, But Nowadays Pure Silica Sand Is Imported From Belgium, Since The Swedish Sand Contains Iron Oxide That Gives The Glass A Green Tinge.Under The Management Of Glass Masters From Kosta, A Succession Of Glassworks Sprang Up In The Forests Of Smland In The Regions Around Vxj And Kalmar. Kosta Therefore Has Good Reason To Call Itself The Parent Works Of The Entire Swedish Kingdom Of Crystal.Until The End Of The 19Th Century, The Glass From Kosta Was Designed By The Glassblowers Themselves. At The Stockholm Exhibition In 1897, The Glassworks Was Criticized For The Uniformity Of Its Glass, Which Led To The Idea Of Enlisting Designers And Artists In Production. The First Designer To Be Employed By Kosta Was Gunnar Wennerberg. The Year Was 1898. Ever Since Then A Large Number Of Artists And Designers Have Enriched The Glassmaking Tradition Of The Works With Their Artistic Talents. Today Kosta