, d. 1955 Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

) was a glassblower who came to work at the Moncrieff glassworks in Perth

Perth, Scotland

Perth is a town and former city and royal burgh in central Scotland. Located on the banks of the River Tay, it is the administrative centre of Perth and Kinross council area and the historic county town of Perthshire...

, Scotland, in 1922 where he designed and produced a range of art glass

Art glass

Definitions of art glass can be as complex and contentious as definitions of what constitutes "art" and will inevitably include many refinements and exceptions...

wares called Monart http://www.decorative-antiques.co.uk/histories/monart.htm.

Life and career

Originally from Barcelona, Salvador worked at the Schneider Art Glass factory in France. In 1915 he moved to Scotland with his family where he was recruited to teach light bulb glassblowing at Leith Flint Glassworks in Edinburgh

Edinburgh

Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...

. In 1922 he moved to the Moncrieff glassworks in Perth, initially to make laboratory glassware with his eldest son Paul (1904–1991). Producing ‘friggers’ (hobby pieces) in their spare time, they were encouraged to produce art pieces and by 1924 had produced a range of decorative glasswares under the name of Monart (from MONcrieff and YsART). By the 1930s, their pattern book contained a range of glasswares including vases, bowls, lampshades, candlesticks, scent bottles, ashtrays and paperweights http://www.btinternet.com/~kevh.glass/pages/salv-ybros/ysartbros.htm and retailed at leading stores such as Liberty & Co. and Tiffany & Co.

Tiffany & Co.

Tiffany & Co. is an American jewelry and silverware company. As part of its branding, the company is strongly associated with its Tiffany Blue , which is a registered trademark.- History :...

.

Production of art glass at Moncrieff’s ceased during WWII. After the war, Moncrieff’s were reluctant to continue producing art glass, so in 1947, Salvador, with his younger sons Vincent and Augustine, set up Vasart Glass. Paul Ysart continued to work at Moncrieff’s, producing a limited range of Monart glass and paperweights till 1961, when art glass production finally ceased.

By the 1950s, Vasart was proving to be popular, but in 1955 Salvador died, followed a year later by Augustine. This left Vincent running the business on his own. Production declined through the late 50's and in 1964, Vasart was taken over by Teachers Whiskey (for whom they were making squashed whiskey bottle ashtrays) and was rebranded as Strathearn Glass.

Monart and Vasart

Monart and Vasart glass objects, such as paperweights, vases and dishes, are characterised by vibrant marbled colours combined with subtle hues and inclusions of mica flecks and bubbles. Their decorative and distinctive style has made such objects popular with collectors, many examples of which can be seen at the Perth Museum http://www.pkc.gov.uk/Education+and+learning/Museums+and+galleries/Perth+Museum+and+Art+Gallery/.

External links

• Monart Glass, Vasart Glass and Strathearn
• John Moncrieff Ltd.

Further reading

• Ysart Glass by F.E. Andrews, Ian Turner and Alison J. Clarke (Volo Edition 1990) ISBN 978-0951446515