Kosta Boda Frutteria Big Fruit Figurine by Gunnel Sahlin

Large Swedish Blown Glass Fruit Figurine

This big fat berry or gourd is signed ‘Kosta Boda, (unknown center scribble), G (Gunnel) Sahlin, 98911’. It is from a limited signed edition. Sahlin came to work with Kosta Boda, Sweden in 1986 and is still a foremost designer for the long-lived upscale Scandinavian glass house. It’s in excellent condition. The pontil mark was bunched and closed into a ‘nub’ that looks more like the end of a berry. The maker’s signature is etched on the base of the nub. The nub balances the figurine. It always sits at a slant.

Mottled teal green glass was blown into an optic mold (vertical optic panel decor) and hand finished with an applied yellow and orange speckled stem. It is blown hollow. The mottling is raised a bit giving the fruit’s skin a slight texture. It’s Big. The decor style (mottled bright coloring) is called ‘Frutteria’ (Italian for ‘fruit stand’). Sahlin’s fruit from this range is also referred to as simply ‘Big’ in reference books. The Frutteria range was produced between 1989 and 1993. No longer in production.

It measures about 5½” tall with a girth of 13½”. It weighs just over 1 lb.