Stem glass c. 1910

Otto Prutscher made this Stem glass, now housed in the Minneapolis Institute of Art, with a kind of stripped-down elegance. Look at how he reduces forms to these simple blocks and lines, constructing the glass piece by piece. It's as if he's building something rather than shaping it. The textures here are fascinating - the smooth, reflective surface of the glass, with its subtle changes in color and transparency. The glass has been treated with what appears to be transparent dark ruby or purple enamel. Notice the way the lines are sharp and clear. They give the whole thing a graphic quality. Prutscher's work reminds me a little of artists like Mondrian, who similarly sought to reduce forms to their essential elements, and I am drawn to how the two pieces, though so distinct, share a common spirit of innovation. Art is an ongoing conversation, right?