A glazed stoneware sculpture of Koalas – Rörstrand Sweden circa 1955 1951 - 1960

Gunnar Nylund

StoneWoodStoneware
25 ⨯ 21 ⨯ 12 cm
ConditionVery good
€ 575

Van Kerkhoff Art

• About the artwork
  A stoneware sculpture of a Koala mother and child, finished in blue-grey and brown glazes on a lacquered ashwood base.
  Gunnar Nylund was particular know for his animal figures with beautiful experimental glazes. The larger examples and sculptures of exotic animals, are especially sought after.
  This sculpture was designed by Gunnar Nylund and executed by the Swedish ceramics factory Rörstrand in the 1950’s.
  It is fully signed underneath: Rörstrand – R with 3 crowns – Sweden – GN (Gunnar Nylund) A2.
  
  About Gunnar Nylund
  Gunnar Nylund (1904-1997) was a Swedish artist, ceramist and sculptor most known for his work for the Swedish ceramic manufacturer Rörstrand.
  
  He was born in Paris to a Danish mother and a Swedish-Finnish father, both artists. His mother Fernanda Jacobsen-Nylund was a ceramist and his father Felix Nylund a sculptor. He grew up in Helsinki and moved to Copenhagen in 1917. In Denmark he received his education as an architect at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in the 1920’s. In 1929 together with Nathalie Krebs he started a ceramics workshop Nylund og Krebs that later was renamed to Saxbo.
  
  In 1931 Nylund started working for the ceramics manufacturer Rörstrand in Lidköping in Sweden, becoming Rörstrand’s artistic director in 1937 and he continued to work there in this position until 1956. In this period Nylund became well known for his innovative feldspar glazes – popularized by renowned ceramists Berndt Friberg and Carl-Harry Stålhane – and his glazed stoneware animal sculptures.
  
  After his time at Rörstrand he became artistic director at the Strömbergshyttans glassworks in Hovmantorp, Sweden and in the early 1960’s worked for the Nymölle Keramiska Fabrik in Lyngby, Denmark where he started producing stoneware.
  
  Nylund crafted some 30 reliefs and sculptures commissioned for public spaces and many of his sculptures are part of museal collections ie: The National Museum in Stockholm, the Sèvres museum in Paris, the Röhsska museet in Gothenburg, the Ateneum museum in Helsinki and the Danish Museum of Art & Design.
  
  Marked
  Marked underneath the base: Rörstrand – R (Rörstrand) with 3 crowns – Sweden – GN (Gunnar Nylund) A2
  
  Execution
  Rörstrand, Sweden 1951-1960
  
  Condition
  This sculpture is in very good condition. No cracks or chips.
  Lacquered ashwood base included.
  
  Literature
  Mel Bryans – The Design Encyclopedia p. 535
  
  Dimensions
  Height 25 cm (including base)
  Width 21 cm
  Depth 12 cm
  Weight 1776 grams
• About the artist

  Gunnar Nylund (1904-1997) was an artist, designer and sculptor of Danish and Finnish origin that predominantly worked in Sweden. A true pioneer of mid-century era decorative arts, he is considered one of the most important ceramicists of the 20th century and is best known for his work with the very famous Swedish ceramic manufacturer Rörstrand.

  Nylund was exposed to various art forms at an early age thanks to his artistic parents. This exposure greatly contributed to his multi-disciplinary abilities and clearly served his varied career within the decorative arts well. Although he initially studied architecture in Copenhagen, he left these studies to accept a permanent position at the porcelain factory Bing & Gröndahl. It was there that he met Danish ceramic artist Nathalie Krebs, with whom he would go on to develop his own innovative range and, later, the workshop ‘Saxbo’ in 1930.

  His experimentation with new forms greatly impressed Rörstrand, who appointed him as Artistic Director in 1932 until 1955. Following this period, Nylund took the role as Artistic Director of Strömbergshyttan glassworks while still freelancing as a ceramic designer. Although Nylund’s body of work in glass is much less than that in ceramic, it is clear that he also excelled in the medium creating timeless elegant vessels in beautiful colours.

  Like many of his well-known contemporaries, Nylund’s work is defined by an exploration of modern shapes and techniques in addition to his smooth mat glazes and beautiful subdued colours. His revolutionary stoneware vases are a great example of this whereby he used chamotte, a raw clay material, mixed with modelling clay. This material ensured objects did not collapse while they were being made, allowing for more delicate finer forms.

  Beyond stoneware and glassware, Nylund is also an accomplished sculptor that was commissioned to create many works for public spaces, theatres, libraries and banks. His work is housed in numerous Swedish museums, including the National Museum in Stockholm, as well as various others such as the Danish Museum of Art & Design, Ateneum Art Museum in Helsinki and the National Ceramics Museum of Sèvres in Paris.

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