Nanny Still
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Nanny Still-McKinney | |
|---|---|
 Nanny Still in 1960 | |
| Born | Nanny Elisabet Still 31 July 1926[1] |
| Died | 7 May 2009 (aged 82)[1] |
| Known for | Glass design |
| Spouse |
George Clagett McKinney
(m. 1958) |
Nanny Elisabet Still-McKinney (31 July 1926 — 7 May 2009), best known professionally by her maiden name Nanny Still, was a Finnish industrial designer and glass artist, and one of the country's most influential designers of the post-war period.[1][2]
Nanny Still studied design at the Central School of Industrial Arts in Helsinki (now part of the Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture) from 1945 to 1949.[1]
Straight after graduation she joined the design team at Riihimäki Glass, as one of their first woman designers, and remained associated with Riihimäki for over quarter of a century, until 1976 when the factory stopped producing artisanal glass.[3][4][5] Afterwards she designed for many manufacturers in and outside of Finland, including Rosenthal of Germany.[5]
Her perhaps best known glass tableware design is the 1958 Harlekiini of simple geometric shapes in a deep Mediterranean blue.[5]
Still drew attention from early on with her bold use of colours and unconventional shapes.[1][4] She also became recognised for her technical know-how and mastery of manufacturing methods.[3]
Although best known for glass, Still designed over her long and varied career a wide range of items, from crockery and cutlery to jewellery.[1]
From the 1990s onwards, Still worked mostly on glass sculptures creating utilising in particular the pâte de verre casting technique.[1]
Recognition
In 1972, Still received the Pro Finlandia medal of the Order of the Lion of Finland.[6]
Some of her designs are included in the collections of the British Museum,[7] MoMA[8] and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, among others.[9]
Major retrospective exhibitions of Still's oeuvre were held at least in Belgium (1995, 2006), Finland (1996, 2001) and Hungary (1998).[5][1][10]
