Finest glass pieces on show at Erasmus

By Myra Sidharta

JAKARTA (JP): In 1765, two German brothers Pilgram and Meeder decided to open a glass factory in Leerdam, a town near Rotterdam in the Netherlands. Their first productions were green and brown bottles, blown into cone-shaped huts.

Many bottles found their way to the Indies after they had been filled with jenever, the alcoholic drink of the Dutch. The factory that started with 10 glass blowers expanded gradually and was able to celebrate its centennial, but in 1871 it was sold to Jeekels and Mijnssen, who tried to experiment with new techniques and materials. These experiments were not successful and in 1877 the factory changed hands again and became the "Leerdam" glass factory.

This factory produced blown and pressed glass for tableware from crystal, a crystal mix as well as glass. The products were popular not only on the domestic market but also in South America, Mexico and England. They only had limited designs of simple forms, like tulips, eggs and balloon designs, but people could have their own designs made to order.

It was PM Cochius who brought a new concept to manufacturing in 1912. At the turn of the century, new visions on design were blooming in Europe; just like art nouveau in France and Jugendstil in Germany, there was an important idealistic movement in the Netherlands to improve the quality of everyday design, led by architects and furniture makers.

Shapes inspired by nature were stylized, geometrical designs introduced and the role of ornament was reduced. This Functionalist movement was led in the Netherlands by architect Hendrik P Berlage. He believed that architects should not limit themselves to designing buildings, but that they should also pay attention to decoration, furniture and tableware.

Cochius, who wanted to make good glassware available to the masses, tried to achieve this goal by assigning designers to improve the designs of his products. The regular production of generic glassware continued, but designer glassware soon became quite popular. Trademarks were etched into glassware to identify the designer.

The first assignment was given to KPC de Bazel. De Bazel was an architect, theosophist and freemason who designed glassware along "harmonious, geometrical and mystical lines" to combine beauty and functionality. His first full set of crystalware was produced in 1917, and he designed a number of glassware services until his death in 1923. He was a difficult man to work with, he only liked simple designs with minimal decoration. Moreover, his glassware was expensive to make, fragile and very difficult to clean.

Another designer was Hendrik P Berlage (1856-1934), who was a famous architect and promoter of good design. In 1900, he presented his first glassware designs to Leerdam, but the factory was not ready for his ideas. His first three glassware services were manufactured by Pantin in France, between 1900 and 1903. Later, in 1923, Berlage designed a pressed glass breakfast service for Leerdam. It had pieces that were hexagonal in shape and striking milky yellow colors. His blown glass service Ovata (1927) was based on the shape of the egg and was produced until 1940.

The factory color scheme included clear crystal, amber, purple, dark amethyst, black amethyst, matte black, green and yellow-green, light blue and blue, and some glasses had iridescent or light gold-luster finishes. After 1928, brown and red were added, as well as gray-violet. Leerdam commissioned designs such as a full set of matching glasses. Such a glass service would consist of a wine decanter, a cordial decanter, a water decanter, a large and a small wineglass, a champagne glass, glasses for port, cordial, liqueur, beer, water and lemonade, a green glass for white wine, finger bowls and various dishes.

Some of the artists designed for special occasions. Lanooy designed an orange vase titled "Orange Apple" to celebrate queen (then princess) Juliana's birthday in 1927. Later in 1938, Andries Copier designed a similar vase also titled "Orange Apple" to celebrate the birth of princess Beatrix.

The most prolific designer who worked for Leerdam was Andries Copier who was born in Leerdam in 1901 and lived to the age of 90. He studied at the Utrecht School of Graphic Art and at Rotterdam Academy, and he joined Leerdam in his mid-teens as a trainee glassblower.

His first designs were exhibited in 1919, and his first glass service, inspired by floral shapes, was designed in 1923. Leerdam vases designed by Andries Copier won first prize at the 1925 Paris Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts. After a trip to the Bauhaus in the late 1920s, his shapes became more geometric and functional. In an interview some months before his death in 1991, Copier explained his early mistakes.

Drinking glasses with elegant outgoing rims forced the glass blowers to make a huge bubble of which only the lower part was used. These glasses slopped over easily, were very fragile and impossible to clean, and few survived. His most famous design is the wineglass "Gilde" from 1930 which is still in production today, and which is considered something of a modern icon.

A friend of mine proudly showed me her wineglasses and a tall but slim glass called a champagne flute.

"They were wedding presents from friends, when we got married in the 1950s in the Netherlands. We treasure these glasses very much, because they give a special distinction to our dinners. Unfortunately, we don't use them very often now, because we only use them for very special occasions," she said with a sigh, while carefully putting the glasses away.

For antique hunters, there may still be some old, unsigned Leerdam pieces in glass or crystal to be found in the flea market on Jl. Surabaya or in antique shops now scattered all over Jakarta. Glasses may not come in complete sets, but a crystal cheese dish with cover may be still be available. Just look for the chrysanthemum shaped cut-out on the bottom of each piece.

An exposition arranged by interior architect Tom Berends at Erasmus Huis was opened on March 8 by Suwati Kartiwa from the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture. It will last until April 4 and features, besides the famous "Gilde" series by Copier (mistakenly quoted as "Pier" in the invitations), also some of the finest glass pieces designed by contemporary Dutch artists.

They show that glass too can be a medium with which artists can express their creativity esthetically. For those who want to know more about Leerdam, a prize-winning video recording about work in the glass factory by famous Dutch cineast Bert Haanstra is available at the touch of a button.