Lilac & Blue Art Glass Vase Duo – Jan Beranek for Skrdlovice, 1950s–1960s

Pair of heavy, hand-blown glass vases by Jan Beránek for Škrdlovice, shaped with asymmetric openings, folded contours and deep indentations in contrasting lilac and azure-blue glass. Beránek, son of the glassworks’ founder Emanuel Beránek, combined traditional Bohemian furnace techniques with the expressive forms of postwar Czech glass.

• Dimensions:
  
  • Taller blue vase: H 20 cm, Dia. 10 cm
    
  • Smaller lilac vase: H 16.5 cm, Dia. 10 cm
    
• Material: Hand-blown glass
  
• Brand: Škrdlovice Glassworks
  
• Designer: Jan Beránek
  
• Color: Lilac and Blue
  
• Condition: Very good vintage condition with minor surface wear to the bases. The taller vase has a very small, stable chip to the foot rim, barely visible when displayed; no cracks or repairs.
  
• Era: 1950s–1960s
  
• Origin: Czechoslovakia
  

Best displayed together on a console, shelf or windowsill where natural light can pass through the thick glass and reveal the layered colours. Their contrasting heights also work well with a single stem or short branch in each vase.

Jan Beránek (born 1933), son of the glassworks’ founder Emanuel Beránek, trained as a glassmaker before studying at the glass school in Nový Bor. He served as workshop manager at Škrdlovice from 1957 to 1987, producing his own designs and working with leading Czech artists including František Vízner, Stanislav Libenský and Pavel Hlava. His work is recognised for heavy hand-blown glass, expressive asymmetry and colour embedded deep within the material.

Baranek Glassworks – better known by its post-war name Škrdlovice – was founded in 1940-41 by master glassmaker Emanuel Beránek and his brothers in the village of Škrdlovice (Vysočina, Czechoslovakia), quickly gaining a reputation for heavy, hand-formed “hutní” art glass with rich colors, bubbles, and layered effects. Nationalized after 1948, the factory operated within the state design system and collaborated with leading artists; highlights include Jan Kotík’s celebrated “Propeller” vases and limited hot-worked series by František Vízner, among others. After restitution in 1992 the works returned to the family under Vlastimil Beránek, continuing hand-made production until its closure in 2008; today, Škrdlovice’s output is recognized as a cornerstone of 20th-century Czech studio glass and remains highly collectible.