Material Polished hand-blown glass canes with powder inserts
Dimensions 26.3 × 16.6 × 16.6 cm
Status Vetted

About the Work

'Laguna Vase' (1999) is a unique, signed and dated vase that captures Yoichi Ohira’s deep, decades-long dialogue with the Venetian lagoon. Composed of polished hand-blown glass canes with delicate powder inserts, the piece reveals shifting tones and patterns that seem to hover within the glass — like light refracted on water or distant reflections in a canal. The compact, harmonious form sits comfortably in the hand, inviting close inspection of its subtly modulated surface.

As with all of Ohira’s work, there is no improvisation here: the vase translates one of his precise watercolour designs into glass, realised in collaboration with master glassmakers in Murano. The intricate structure of canes and colour fields showcases Ohira’s ability to push traditional Venetian techniques toward a distinctly personal language, where glass can evoke stone, ivory or the gentle movement of the lagoon itself. 'Laguna' thus stands as both an homage to Venice and a testament to Ohira’s refined, meditative approach to contemporary glass.

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View artwork at TEFAF Maastricht 2026

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