Annikki Hovisaari Flared Vase

An unusual studio vase, handmade by Annikki Hovisaari for Arabia, Finland, circa 1965.

This piece beautifully demonstrates the opposing qualities found in Hovisaari's body of work. Its complex, architectural silhouette is constructed with high precision, yet its surface treatment is deliberately spontaneous. Coarse chamotte gives the clay an almost geological texture, over which shades of rust and chocolate brown have been freely brushed, allowed to drip, pool and overlap while areas of the clay remain exposed.

This tension between control and spontaneity is particularly compelling in Hovisaari's work. An exceptionally skilled maker with a particular command of glaze, she treated both form and surface as areas for experimentation. Here, the precise, UFO-like geometry of the vase acts as a framework for the much freer expression of the glaze and textured clay.

Hovisaari joined Arabia in 1949, initially working in the company's industrial art department. Her career took an important turn in 1963 when she moved into Arabia's Art Department, where she could concentrate increasingly on unique studio ceramics. With the technical resources of the factory at her disposal, the following decade produced some of her most individual experiments in form, clay and glaze.

This vase has a closely related, larger counterpart, also available from Art & Utility. Displayed together, the difference in scale gives the two closely related forms an especially satisfying rhythm.