Posted 9 years ago
mikelv85
(1232 items)
I thought this awesome abstract paperweight (?) would be an easy ID being signed and dated on the polished bottom. Started my search online and you would think something this unique would pop right up. Well as luck would have it the signature kind of trails off to nothing. It looks like Williamson or Wilkerson or even Wilshire. The date is clear enough though as "98". Nothing even close online using all those names and every type of description I could think of. Art glass, Studio glass, Confetti glass, modern, abstract, hole in the middle even biomorphic..nothing zero-zip-nada ! So either it's a very exclusive one of a kind piece or just an unknown piece of studio glass. Could be a small sculpture too as it measures 6" by 3" high. A really nice piece regardless of it's pedigree. -Mike-
NOTE: Finally got an ID on this piece thanks to CW member Emme. It's the work of the Fred Wilkerson Glass Studio, Moundsville, West Virginia. Thanks Emme :)
Fred Wilkerson
Courtesy of
wilkersonglass.weebly.com
Fred Wilkerson made his first paperweight in 1975 at the age of twelve when his father, a worker at Fostoria Glass, built a furnace to make paperweights as a hobby. Fred worked alongside his father as much as possible, watching his every move. He spent the next fourteen years polishing his skills until he decided to make Wilkerson Glass his full-time career in 1989, where he would work with his father.
Wilkerson Glass, located in Moundsville, West Virginia, has sold paperweights as far as Germany and Austria, and throughout the United States. They have also done contracted work for companies such as Owens Corning and Danbury Mint, as well as The White House.
Fred also demonstrates his paperweight making technique at Carriage House Glass located at Oglebay Park in Wheeling, West Virginia.
Nice piece ... Can you get a clearer pic of signature?
Found a "Fiona WILKES " of Salt Glass Gallery ( UK ) but just guessing here .....?
Ah yes Rose the closeup.....the bane of my photos....lol. I just can't get good clear closeups without them blurring. It's an LG phone camera so this is as good as it gets. I really don't know how others do it unless they have expensive digital cameras or maybe an I phone with tons of settings.
Well, zippity-do-dah.....I get that often when attempting to research something.
I use a magnifier to get super close up photos. I have a jeweler's loup, and I hold it against the camera lens and focus with the camera until the focus locks. Then I can get a clear close up.
LOL....i have just a cheap one I carry around ( Digital ) but it has the flower on it for Close up. Can you take it a bit away -- then crop just the picture in? Is it still fuzzy then if you crop into a larger pic to it?
I'll take a new one and I can try and run it through the photo editor using resize or invert color and see if that might help.
Maybe the new photos will help. In the meantime, I see Wilkens or Williams?
Thanks Katherine :)...that pretty much is all you can really make out even with it right in front of you. Past the first four letters it's pretty much just a wavy line after that with 98' below it. PS...this is the new one..lol :)
Then I guess there's no use trying Bonnie's trick with the magnifying glass in front of the camera lens? It's funny how a signature can look fairly clear then it turns out they aren't clear at all! :/
So close yet so far Katherine....it's just as frustrating as an illegible signature on a painting. I gave Bonnie's trick a try but it just made it even worse for some odd reason. You would think the shape would be all you need to ID this piece. I'm sure the artist made more than one or is this the only one in the whole world and I have it ! :)
looks like "WILLIAMS" to me !! very beautiful!!
Thanks Sean...that's what I thought too, but results for any searches using Williams turned up empty. Being such a unique shape doesn't help either. That's a zero in the image galleries as well. This one's a real mystery. I was thinking the taller letter might be a capital "A" so it's a first and last name say maybe ...Wil Ames or Amos or Arnot. Been wracking my brain and eyes on this one for sure...lol.
Beautiful colors:)
This is beautiful Mike. I actually fell asleep looking for this when I saw it. Not at all out of boredom but the cold medicine kicked in and I wanted to find it. ;) The signature looks familiar to me from the land of oz but I was searching for wilkins.? I just looked again for about forever. Whomp, Whomp,
It's bugging me too! LOL
Thanks One :)...I figure it will turn up some day completely out of the blue while I'm looking for something else....just always seems to work out that way for some reason...lol.
It will mike. I was looking for a really different looking piece of a green blown vase that had a green blown vase inside of it last week and found what I think is my Halloween vase. While we're at it maybe you can tell me what you think.
https://www.google.com/search?q=dale+tiffany+favrile+sonora+art+glass+vase&biw=1093&bih=520&tbm=isch&source=lnms&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi3j6Ts4evKAhVKOj4KHaTGCGIQ_AUIfigB
Beautiful piece. Look up Adrian Wilkins.
Thanks Emme.... I'll do that :)
Strange....Not finding anything Emme :(
Oops. viv wilkins. Or http://fineartamerica.com/featured/coloured-art-glass-adrian-wilkins.html
Disregard earlier posts. Obviously, I'm useless until coffee kicks in. Try this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Fred-Wilkinson-Art-Glass-Controlled-Bubble-Paperweight-/231829547899?hash=item35fa1e2b7b:g:QdMAAOSw7FRWXEhK
It's a start.
Oh now I see the problem...he's a photographer. These are photos of art glass taken by Adrain Wilkens. You can order the prints and cards on the right.
Disregard this is the one. http://wilkersonglass.weebly.com/about.html
I am confident of this.
lol..you're a trooper Emme.
Here's his photo gallery on his Facebook page. Not much activity recently either. Still nothing even close to this one even though he creates all kinds of shapes. Very well might be one of kind. Guess I could send him an e-mail and see if he'd ID it as his or not.
https://www.facebook.com/Wilkerson-Glass-158288050892917/photos_stream?tab=photos_stream
His father was a glass artist for Fenton. I think this may be his father's page. Also, if you look on his weebly site, he has a section called "abstract" and this piece could very well fall into that category.
I tried to open the section on the Weebly gallery page but none of them will open. He isn't making this easy Emme...lol
It's never easy. Did you check out the foundry he works at?
Got it all put together Emme. Verified the signature with one from Ebay and updated the post. Changed the last picture to include the comparison. Thanks so much for all the help. -Mike-
wonderful.
Thank you Midnight :)