Riihimäki glass ( fi, Riihimäen lasi) was a reputed
glass company in
Riihimäki,
Finland, in operation from 1910, when it was founded by Mikko Adolf Kolehmainen, to 1990. Their production ranged from basic to high quality glass ornaments, which are now sought after as collectibles, especially some of their vases. Riihimäki products are readily available via collectors' web sites, as are their values.
It produced everyday glassware and
art glass
Art glass is a subset of glass art, this latter covering the whole range of art made from glass. Art glass normally refers only to pieces made since the mid-19th century, and typically to those purely made as sculpture or decorative art, with ...
until 1976 and
cut glass until 1977. After that, it made only machine produced glass and plastic packaging.
Ahlstrom Corporation purchased the company in 1980, and closed the Riihimäki plant in 1990.
Among the designers associated with Riihimäki in its early decades were , ,
Gunnel Nyman, and after 1945, (1959–1976),
, , (1954–1955),
Timo Sarpaneva
Timo Tapani Sarpaneva (31 October 1926 – 6 October 2006) was an influential Finnish designer, sculptor, and educator best known in the art world for innovative work in glass, which often merged attributes of display art objects with utilitaria ...
, and (1968–1976), as well as
Helena Tynell. It was
Nanny Still who joined the design team by winning the Nordic art competition the firm held in 1949.
Finnish Glass Museum
Since 1980, the Finnish Glass Museum has been housed in then a glass factory building where Riihimäki Glass started a manufacturing blown glass in 1921. The original owner of that facility was Paloheimo since 1914, which financially supported Riihimäki Glass at its latter stage of operation. The manufacturing at that factory shifted from glass to plastic packaging, then to screen printing.
Footnotes
Note
References
Further reading
* Andy McConnell (2006) ''20th-century Glass''. Miller's Guides.
* Riihimäen Lasi Oy 1910–1960, Riihimäen lasi 1960, p.172. Historiikin kirjoittanut V. Länsiluoto.
*
* Hoffrén, Jouko ; Penttilä Kalevi. (1979) ''Riihimäen historia I''
istory of Riihimäki I pp.347–359,904–921. Karisto, Hämeenlinna.
External links
Glass objects made by Riihimäki glassDesignlasi.com
Glassmaking companies of Finland
Riihimäki
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