Sonja Blomdahl (American, b. 1952), Incalmo Glass Vessel

Late 20th century, double gourd shaped blown glass with green over clear over cased yellow/red, polished pontil, signed and numbered B4592.

13.25 in.

The Contemporary Art Collection of Francine & Benson Pilloff, Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Incalmo refers to the technique of constructing an object, usually a vessel, by fusing two or more blown glass elements. The process, first practiced in the Islamic world in the Middle Ages, demands great precision because the edges of the adjoining elements must have precisely the same diameter.

Born in Waltham, Massachusetts, Sonja Blomdahl earned a B.F.A. degree in 1974 at Massachusetts College of Art, where she studied with Dan Dailey. In 1976 she spent six months at Glasskilan, the Orrefors glass factory in Sweden. In 1978, while working as Dailey's assistant at Pilchuk Glass School in Stanwood, Washington, she observed Italian glassblower Checco Ingaro's use of the incalmo technique. This technique suited Blomdahl's exploration of symmetrical form and color in glass spheres.

Blomdahl has held teaching positions at Pratt Fine Arts Center in Seattle, Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Deer Isle, Maine, and the Appalachian Center in Smithville, Tennessee.

Good condition.