Propeller Glass Vase - Jan Kotík for Beránek (Škrdlovice) Glassworks, 1960s

Handblown uranium glass vase with asymmetrical, propeller-like indentations and thick sommerso layering in yellow-green; glossy finish with vivid UV-reactive glow. A sculptural Czech modernist piece by Jan Kotík, produced at Beránek (Škrdlovice), prized for kinetic form and optical depth.

• Dimensions: H 20 cm, Dia approx. 13 cm
• Material: Handblown uranium glass, sommerso technique
• Brand: Beránek (Škrdlovice) Glassworks
• Designer: Jan Kotík
• Color: Layered yellow-green, fluorescent under UV
• Condition: Excellent vintage; light base wear
• Era: c. 1960, Mid-Century Modern
• Origin: Czechoslovakia (Czech Republic)
• Remarks: Series “Propeller,” model 5503; approx. 2.5 kg; strong fluorescence.
  

Collectors of Czech studio glass or statement pieces; anchors minimalist, brutalist, or eclectic interiors.

Jan Kotik (1916–2002) was a Czech painter, printmaker, industrial designer, and art theorist- co-founder of the post-war avant-garde Skupina 42 (Group 42) and, from 1950–53, head of an atelier at ÚLUV, the state design center. His applied-arts work included influential hot-shop glass for the Škrdlovice/Baranek glassworks, notably the “Propeller” (model 5503) vase designed in 1955 and produced into the 1960s. Kotík also earned international recognition with a silver medal at Expo ’58 in Brussels for glass, later settling in Berlin in 1970, where he continued exhibiting and writing until his death in 2002.

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 (designed 1955, executed in the Škrdlovice hot shop) 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.