New-York based designer Jonathan Hansen unveils 'In The Clouds' crystal glassware collection

The new handcrafted and engraved collection of Bohemian crystal explores the theme of the blue sky, conveying a sense of lightness and liberation within each piece.

Reputed New-York based designer Jonathan Hansen presents his first signature handcrafted and engraved crystal glassware collection, titled In the Clouds. Made by master craftsmen of the Bohemian crystal tradition in the Czech Republic, the collection features 10 hand-engraved glass pieces, ranging from wine goblets, water glasses, and tumblers to carefully sculpted carafes, available in both clear and tinted grey crystal. The images of the clouds are finely engraved in the material, each uniquely punctuating the skies of mouth blown crystal. Launching in Autumn 2021, the collection underlines the refinement and lightness in the materiality of Bohemian crystal, as Hansen once again brings a modern sensibility to traditional materials and fabrication methods.

Further nurturing his dialogue with master craftsmen from across Europe, having worked with the finest Limoges porcelain craftsmen and Italian marble carvers, Hansen deploys his artistic language in tandem with the master craftsmen that follow the Czech Republic’s centuries-old traditional crystal production. Cut, engraved, blown, and painted by hand, Bohemian crystal, hailing from the regions of Bohemia and Silesia since the late 16th century, has long been distinguished for the quality and beauty that has come to characterize its ateliers and schools, and the techniques passed on by them. In the Clouds is characterized by this finesse and the embodiment of its unique essence, as each piece in the collection, handmade, is slightly different – a tactility that can only be felt in the perfection and imperfection of this craft.

Moving from Limoges porcelain to glass, Hansen immerses himself once more in the atmospheric depth that he endowed upon his 2020 Ciels Bleus collection, conceived in collaboration with esteemed French design brand Marie Daâge. Returning to the theme of the blue sky, he further cultivates the notion of clearness, this time expressing it through both the concept and a material that inherently possesses this attribute. Hansen’s clear skies, pristinely blue on the delicate Limoges porcelain, embrace the full expanse of their meaning as they take on the transparent Bohemian glass. Hansen’s pieces exude a material clarity, evoking a boundless space and a fresh, contemplative lightness.

“Capturing in a transparent material a subject that is itself a mass of water drops, constantly moving and alive, was a big part of my idea behind the In the Clouds collection. The engravers were able to create a beautiful sense of movement through the varying engraving depths, and in combination with the refraction of light and transparency of the crystal, the clouds come to life.” – Jonathan Hansen

Through this collection, Hansen detaches his objects from their material constraints. Extending the perceived limits of crystal, he confers it with a new topography of its own. This Leitmotiv in the designer’s work is also perceptible in his ongoing SERIES. While the first iteration, Captum Biomorfe, set organic forms within the material restraints of a cast, using Calacatta marble and resin mounted on bronze, SERIES II: Eximo Biomorfe further probes the oppositional forces of captivity and freedom in static objects.

Though In the Clouds marks the first crystal glassware collection under his name, Hansen has been working with the material since 2009. He has built an extensive portfolio of glassware collections produced for leading designers and brands, including Thom Browne for Baccarat, Lisa Perry for Coca-Cola, and AERIN.

The In the Clouds collection is available for pre-order on leading design and fashion retailer Moda Operandi. Additional reputed international retailers including FARFECTH and Browns will follow in the Fall 2021.