Bjørn Wiinblad: ceramic artist,
draughtsman, painter and designer
Bjørn Wiinblad was born on September 20th 1918 in
Copenhagen. From 1935 he was an apprentice in typography and
afterwards attended Technical School from 1936-1939. At From
1940 - 1943 her studied painting at The Royal Academi of Art with
Aksel Joergensen and later he studied at the studios of Lars
Syberg.
The leitmotif of Bjoern Wiinblad has always been "to make people
happy". Which is why he was called The Merry Son of Nature. Bjørn
Wiinblad possessed an original talent and had a big and deep love
of oriental art reflected in his personal style and idiom. From
1946 he was employed by the
Nymoelle Faience Factory. At Nymolle Bjorn Wiinblad
created his characteristic, multifarious series in red, green and
black. The Month plates - socalled butter boards, year- and
season-plates, vases and pots to mention only a few.
On Hojskolevej 5 in Kgs. Lyngby Bjorn Wiinblad opened his own
workshop in 1952. The products from
Bjørn Wiinblad's own workshop are often handpainted
and more artistic than the pieces Bjorn Wiinblad created for
Nymølle and Rosenthal. At this workshop he produced fountains,
tiles, a huge production of vases, figurines, candlesticks and
dishes.
Bjoern Wiinblads big glass and crystal plates as well as series
like "Aladin" and the Christmas- and Christmas Carol-plate series
were created for
Rosenthal Porzellan from 1957. The co-operation
between Bjorn Wiinblad and Rosenthal was not limited to plates. On
behalf of Rosenthal he designed glasses, bowls, dinnersets, vases
and much more.
Bjorn Wiinblad covers a wide field having designed wallpaper,
textiles, artist-shopping-bags and artist canisters, sculptures in
bronze, tapestries, several posters, furniture, tableware, drinking
glasses, pots, bowls, plates, tiles, fountains, paintings,
candlesticks, interior decoration, theater scenery decorations and
theater costumes, illustrating the Thousand and one Nights as well
as several children's books. He even wrote a children's book
himself.
His creations and works have been countless.
Bjørn Wiinblad plates and more from Rosenthal
Bjørn Wiinblad Nymølle plates
Bjørn Wiinblad Workshop products
Bjorn Wiinblad: ceramic artist, draughtsman, painter
and designer
Born September 20th 1918 in Copenhagen. From 1935 he
was an apprentice in typography and afterwards attended Technical
School of Frederiksberg 1936-1939. At The Royal Academi of Art he
studied painting and illustration with Aksel Jorgensen from January
1940 untill spring 1943. Later Bjorn Wiinblad was educated at the
studios of Lars Syberg in Taastrup.
The leitmotif of Bjoern Wiinblad has always been "Making
people happy". He is also known as "The Happy Son of
Nature". His big and deep love of oriental art is probably what is
reflected in the personal style and spirit of Bjorn Wiinblad.
Combining colours beautifully, is another skill given to Bjoern
Wiinblad at birth. His whole life had been dominated by his need to
stand out, and with the big personality showing in his line and
expression, no one has been able to come even close.
He possesses a unique talent, and he has been capable of
creating his works without spoiling the originality of his splendid
expression by the surrounding influences. From 1946 he was
employed by the Nymoelle Faience Factory. Here his
international career took off. At Nymoelle Wiinblad created his
characteristic, multifarious series in red, green and black, the
monthplates - socalled butter boards, year- and season-plates,
vases and pots to mention a few.
Moreover he made several commissioned orders for various
occasions - for example the plates marking the 50th
anniversary of "Imerco" or the opening of "Inspiration". Uncommon
is the morning-noon-evening series, the motifs being brown and
blue.
On Hoejskolevej 5 in Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark, Bjorn
Wiinblad opened his own workshop in 1952. The products
made in his own workshop are somewhat more artistic than the
factory produced pieces created for respectively Nymolle and
Rosenthal. The products from the workshop are mostly
handpainted, and here Bjorn Wiinblad is of course
free to follow any wish or dream of creation that he might have,
shown for example in his fountains and tiles, as well as his huge
production of figurines, vases, chandeliers and dishes.
Bjoern Wiinblads big glass and crystal plates as well as series
like "Aladin" were created for Rosenthal Porzellan
from 1957. At Rosenthal he developed a new style of expression. The
production of Bjorn Wiinblad Christmas and Aladin plates is in a
quite new expression with strong, warm colours in bigger shape
planes, richly decorated in gold - giving the exotic, colourful and
oriental impression.
In Bjorn Wiinblads big, heavy crystal-plates as
well, he is crossing new roads, testing and experimenting with glas
in layers, developing a most beautiful plate in several layers,
with the decorations being in between the glass-layers.
"The Parables" and the christmas
plates in glass and crystal being totally unique in plate
production. Also on behalf of Rozenthal, Wiinblad made a
christmas-carol plate series, also in a colourful
and gold-decorated style. However, the motifs are more delicate,
thereby understood, that the shapes are smaller and with more petit
details. T
he co-operation between Bjorn Wiinblad and Rosenthal is not
limited to plates. On behalf of Rosenthal he designed glas products
(e.g. the "Tulipa" candlesticks), drinking glasses, bowls, several
service sets (to mention a few: Lotus, Romance and The Magic
Flute), vases and much more. For the 2500 years jubilee of the
Iranian Shah ruling Bjorn Wiinblad was commissioned to created a
tableservice set to mark the occassion.
"The House of Bjorn Wiinblad", owned by Bjoern Wiinblad
himself, existed from 1971 in Ostergade, Copenhagen. By
1977 Bjoern Wiinblad took over the Knabstrup Lervarefabrik after
having taken over the Nymolle Faience Factory one year earlier. The
Knabstrup Factory served as sub-supplier to the Nymolle Factory,
until both companies were closed. The Knabstrup Factory closed in
1988.
Wiinblad even designed postal stamps in 1986, both on behalf of
the Danish postal service and on behalf of US Postal. His tasks and
commissions through the years have been countless. During the past
15-20 year big hotels, restaurants and companies have commissioned
Bjorn Wiinblad to be the interior decorator. Among others, the
Wiinblad Restaurant at the D´Angleterre Hotel in Copenhagen is
exclusively decorated with Bjoern Wiinblad designs and motifs, just
like London Hilton and several hotels and restaurants in Japan.
Bjoern Wiinblad covers a wide field having designed wallpaper,
textiles, artist-shopping-bags and artist canisters (on behalf of
the danish supermarket Irma), sculptures in bronze, tapestries,
several posters, furniture, table service, drinking glasses, pots,
bowl, plates, tiles, fountains, paintings, candlesticks, theater
scenery decorations and theatre costumes, illustrating the Thousand
and one Nights as well as several children's books. He even wrote a
children´s book himself. His creations and works have been
numerous.
Bjorn Wiinblad died in 2006.