Wanted   Do you have a passion for antiques and collectibles - and writing?   The Wayback Times invites you to submit freelance articles for use in print and on our new web site.   E-mail your text submissions to The Wayback Times.   Articles published in The Wayback Times since 1995 have covered a wide range of interests, from Golliwoggs to toy VW collecting, and from collecting insulators to hunting old books.   Most authors of our online selection of articles have included their e-mail addresses and they are always delighted to hear from other collectors.

Ad Rates / Articles / Classified Ads / Editorial / Home / Links / Showtime   Chalet art glass has strong Canadian connection   List Deborah Patterson Next   Chalet art glass - Appealing shapes and colours   By Deborah Patterson Once the quintessential Cornwall wedding gift, a symbol of Canadian excellence at the 1967 World Fair, a cherished heirloom.   Now, an eagerly sought collector’s item, a showcase piece in art glass galleries, the subject of an art gallery retrospective.   Production of Chalet art glass ceased in the June of 1975, but its appeal has lasted from the past millennium into the present. Some call it elegant. Others call it kitschy. Chalet art glass inspires emotions as unique as the glass itself.   The stretch glass movement in Canada (circa 1955-1975) was driven by master glass blowers emigrating from Murano, Italy. In the late 1950s, the frantic pace of innovation sent change and growth into hyper-drive.   Canadians had their own “American Dream” and it was all about bright, light, new and fabulous. Chalet responded by pioneering glass pieces of a more modern design. These artists experimented with new techniques and created stunningly original and highly individualistic pieces.   It was art glass rooted in old-world tradition but evolved into new-world free form hand worked “stretch” glass. Throughout the '60s and ’70s, the emphasis on individuality and “something different” was epitomized by Chalet glass blowers.   They are recognized as the originators of Canadian free form artistic glass and Chalet pieces are recognized as important vintage glass- distinctive in its smooth fluid lines, dramatic shapes and vibrant colours.   After World War II, thousands of European immigrants came to Canada in the 1950s. They changed this country - introducing different cultures, enriching it with their traditions and stimulating new artistic directions. Angelo Tedesco, a skilled glass cutter and engraver, following many of his countrymen from Murano, Italy, settled in Montreal in 1952.   Angelo sponsored his brother, Luigi Tedesco, and his brother-in-law, Sergio Pagnin and their families to Canada. Both men were master glass blowers having apprenticed with Venetian Maestros. Sergio was also a chemist.   In 1958, the three established a small glassmaking factory, Les Industries de Verre et Miroirs. In 1960, the name was changed to Murano Glass. Murano Glass was Canada’s first handmade decorative glassware company.   The Montreal area had become a beacon for glassblowers and other small Italian/Canadian glass factories. Across the Ontario border, Cornwall was facing 10% unemployment and massive job losses caused by the completion of the St. Lawrence Seaway and the closure of the Dundas, Canada and Glengarry cotton mills.   To fight the oncoming recession, the city’s industrial commissioner and local businessmen created the Cornwall Industrial Development Limited. The federal government also designated Cornwall “depressed” and thereby eligible for tax incentives that could be offered to attract new business.   Murano Glass, after suffering a destructive fire, was one of 18 businesses that relocated to Cornwall and production resumed in May 1961. The budget was limited- they worked alone, building their own crucibles, warming ovens and benches and firing only one furnace.   Early pieces were in traditional Venetian style - elaborate and ornate. However, when Sid Heyes of Toronto joined the company as president, and Garry Daigle of Montreal became sales manager, the company direction shifted. They were convinced that Canadians would be attracted by glass pieces of a more modern design.   And rightly so - sales hit $200,000 in 1961.   Two more glassblowers were hired and still orders continued to rise. The company name was again changed in late 1962 to Chalet Artistic Glass - making it clear that Chalet was a Canadian company producing handmade Canadian designs for Canadian tastes by skilled artists.   Growth continued in 1963 and Angelo Tedesco persuaded seven glass blowers, who had arrived from Murano in 1962, to leave Montreal-based Lorraine Glass Industries for Chalet. He was also instrumental in encouraging more Murano glass blowers from Italy to join their peers at Chalet.   In 1963, Antonio Tedesco, also a glass blower, but more significantly a specialist in “molleria” (the grinding and polishing of glass), joined his brothers. Other family members worked in the sales and administrative offices, the factory showroom and various departments.   From 1964 to 1974, more artists joined the existing team. Other workers were hired from Cornwall and the nearby St. Regis Mohawk Reserve at Akwesasne to assist the masters.   Chalet products were novel, beautiful and affordable - ranging from $7 ashtrays to $180 vases. Over 20 styles of lead crystal and 400 items of glassware were produced. The company’s range included centrepieces, bowls, vases, candleholders, baskets, lamps, pitchers, goblets and decanters, paperweights, ashtrays, decorative birds, Madonna figurines, Christmas trees, animals and fruit and mushrooms.   The art of glass making is not for the faint of heart. It involves working long hours with dangerous materials and extreme heat. And it demands dedication - most of Chalet’s artists had worked with glass, as apprentices from their early teens, for such famous Venetian Maestros as Seguso, Itamo Pustetto, Mario Fuga, Venini, Nino D’Este and Aldo Fuga.   When the company changed both name and direction in 1962, Luigi Tedesco and Sergio Pagnin were already master glass blowers. Bruno Panizzon and Guilio Gatto (recruited from Lorraine Glass Industries in 1963) and Angelo Rossi (recruited from Lorraine Glass Industries in 1972) attained master status under the Chalet Maestros.   In 1967, Chalet Artistic Glass received worldwide exposure at the Expo 67 world fair. Specially-commissioned “maple leaf” pieces were showcased in the official Canadian Habitat Pavilion. The smaller versions of these centerpieces were available for purchase, while the largest were given to dignitaries as gifts.   This was not the first or last time the Canadian government singled out the company for special recognition and inspiration.   In 1965, and again in 1971, the National Film Board of Canada featured the company and several of its artists, stressing Canada’s cultural diversity and opportunity.   In 1999, Canada Post issued a 3-cent stamp honouring the art of glass blowing and the artists who make glass speak to us. It is more than likely that Chalet inspired this tribute as the company had been held up repeatedly as a symbol of excellence, cultural diversity and innovation.   By 1972, seven furnaces were in production and Chalet employed approximately 70 people. Factory tours, often needed six times daily due to the demand, were a primary Cornwall tourist attraction. Local school trips to the factory were commonplace. Neighbourhood children considered it an adventure to sneak under the reject chute, claiming small pieces of discarded works as treasure.   Though the Cornwall factory location had a showroom, the main sales office was in Montreal. Pieces available through either of these locations would be etched with the company logo, given hang tags or marked with foil labels.   In addition, lines produced for major distributors and retailers were usually marked with their own branding while other pieces were only stickered with generic “Made in Canada” labels.   Chalet’s popularity then, as now, did not remain restricted to the area or even to Canada. In 1966, Chalet art glass exploded into widespread distribution across North America and overseas distribution as well in London, England and Johannesburg, South Africa - a first for Canadian glass.   The mayor of Cornwall, Ed Lumley, headed a delegation that travelled to over 50 countries presenting Chalet’s art glass to presidents, prime ministers and heads of state. At home, Chalet was proudly showcased in the homes of top Canadian politicians.   The 1970s energy crisis and spiking inflation caused an insurmountable increase in costs for many industries. Glassmakers were not immune - Lorraine Glass Industries had closed in 1974 and at Chalet, Sergio Pagnin replaced Sid Heyes as president.   Although Chalet’s sales remained strong, this reorganization and a three-month closure did not solve major problems with their distributors and the economy continued to worsen. In June 1975, the company filed for bankruptcy.   Some employees, known as the Group of 8, attempted to stop the bankruptcy proceedings and to continue production as Chalet Artistic Glass, but failed. On Oct. 30, the company assets were sold.   The equipment, but not the building or the Chalet name, was bought at auction by entrepreneur Maurice Jaslow in partnership with Angelo Rossi. Rossi was a skilled glass blower who had become a Maestro while working at Chalet.   However, all “Rossi” glass was produced in Cornwall or Niagara Falls after the 1975 closure of Chalet Artistic Canada and is, therefore, not “Chalet.”   Some 36 artists and talented tradesmen were forced to seek unfamiliar jobs in a time of economic uncertainty, escalating inflation and rising unemployment. Another 30 employees, administrative and sales support, also lost their jobs. Some of the glass blowers remained in the Cornwall area, some returned to Italy.   The 1919 brick mill building at Harbour Road and Edward Street in Cornwall that housed Chalet has since burned, but the creativity of its artists has endured.   Not only did they inspire the Canadian free form art glass movement, but opportunities for independent glass studios were established in the era of the glass craftsmen from Murano and most notably by the glass blowers from Chalet Artistic Canada.   Across the country and around the world, there are ardent fans of this vintage art glass. “Chalet” is featured in value books on collectibles, showcased in art glass galleries, purchased online, hunted down in flea markets and hoarded by collectors.   Spectacular multi-coloured and increasingly rare one-of-a-kind finds are boasted about and gloated over by fans. But Chalet enthusiasts aren't surprised by the ever growing recognition - after all we've been “Chalet” all along.   Deborah Patterson is one of those ardent “Chalet” enthusiasts and was the lead coordinator for and a major exhibitor at the recent Chalet retrospective held at the Cornwall Regional Art Gallery. An interior designer, she decorated with Chalet for years until “that piece” triggered the collecting bug. Deborah recently published a reference guide, Chalet Marks, Labels and Product Lines. Visit www.chaletvintageartglass.com for more details.     Return to top of page   This Is Livin' Publishing © 2011 581 8th Line West, RR1 Hastings, ON, K0L 1Y0 Phone/Fax: 705-696-1833   webmaster