for almost 50 years glass artists leopold and rudolf blaschka created plant and flower models for harvard’s botanical museum. originally commissioned as teaching aids – exact, perfect replicas of botanical specimens – the collection grew to include more than 3,000 models representing 830 different species and was eventually accepted as a remarkable collection of art.
nancy marie brown wrote a fascinating article about the blaschkas and the corning museum of glass takes a comprehensive look at the masters, including an interesting video that gives us a glimpse into blaschka’s world. if you get hooked like i did, listen to npr’s podcast about the collection here.
before they embarked on their decades-long association with harvard, father and son were well known for their glass sculptures of sea creatures. however, the botanical work that they completed between 1860 and 1936 is their true legacy. the glass flowers are simply breathtaking. exquisitely detailed…right down to a specimen’s flaws.
a recent post on melanie west’s blog alerted me to this stunning body of work. and speaking of work, have you seen melanie’s latest?
Thanks for the post. There are some 3,000 glass models of plants on permanent display at the Harvard Museum of Natural History. Don’t miss a visit if you’re ever in the Boston/Cambridge area –the museum is just a 6 minute walk from the T stop in Harvard Square.