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GermanMart.com is proud to be able to
offer you a broad selection of fine Swedish crystal designed by the legendary
Mat Jonasson. Mats, an artist and nature lover, is the third generation
of Master Glass Craftsman. He has dedicated his creative talents to making
people aware of the importance of nature for all of us on earth. He has
been singular in capturing wildlife proportions into handmade crystal.
Each subject must have the details and characteristics that it has in
nature, so that it is as close to reality as possible. Each piece is a
work of art and a collectible treasure! The finest full lead crystal available
in Sweden is used for the sculptures.
 The
History of Målerås
The Målerås Glassworks was founded in 1890, then
producing mouth-blown window glass. The Swedish glass industry was once
concentrated to this are a
due to the need for fuel to fire furnaces. Målerås Glassworks in 1929,
oil painting by Johan Ahlbäck
On the 29th of January 1981 the newly appointed managing director of Kosta,
Björn Swärdsson, signed a historic contract. It made Målerås into an independent
glassworks, owned by the employees and villagers. Jonasson's bought twenty-five
shares each in the newly-constructed company. 1984 saw the start of a
wave of investments at Målerås and was one of the most comprehensive in
the more than a hundred- year-old history of the glassworks. It´s still
going on today!
Company Information
Målerås Glasbruk is a Swedish company with a long tradition
in creating and de signing
handcrafted high quality crystal products. They produce wildlife and other
sculptures, bowls, vases, platters and engraved studio pieces in full
lead crystal. The company employs some 80 people,  and
has an export share of 70%. The crystal, mainly Mats wildlife sculptures,
are sold on all continents, in about 70 countries. Other designers include
Rolf Sinnemark and Eva Englund. Målerås is today the largest independent
private glassworks in Sweden.
History
 He
started at Målerås in 1959 upon leaving school at the age of fourteen.
The glass works needed an engraver and, since he was known to be good
at drawing, his father, who was employed there, was asked if his son could
start. After some ten years at Målerås he moved to Kosta, returning to
Målerås in 1975. He has since developed the range of animal motifs that
has become famous all round the world.
How I Create
 Having
done a drawing I make a plaster model. This is an exact replica of the
finished piece. At this stage I  decide
on the background - what is to surround the piece. The next step is to
engrave the body on the plaster model. Then I varnish the model and make
a positive cast of it also in plaster. This cast, which is the right way
round, is the model for the final iron mould. We now have a raw mould.
The raw mould is also worked on. I use diamond drills, revolving file
and ultrasonic tools to clarify the details of the motif and to polish
the parts requiring a glossy finish. When am satisfied with the mould
it is passed to the glass workshop where the molten crystal i s
cast in it. We start by heating the iron mould so that the difference
in temperature between it and the molten crystal is not too  severe
We use a crystal of a special type which
the Swedish Glass Research Institute has helped us to develop. This is
the most costly crystal but it is especially well suited to casting and
pressing. A large piece of this crystal has greater refraction and is
smoother and more brilliant. It treats the light in a special way. After
casting, the glass is annealed in a lehr for 15-20 hours. If it is cooled
to quickly it will crack. After annealing there is a first quality inspection.
Glass with imperfections is thrown out. The next step is sand blasting.
We work with different grades of cutting sand at various velocities. After
sandblasting the motifs are polished. Any unevenness on the background
and foot of the piece is then ground smooth. First the piece is ground
on a coarse diamond wheel and then on a finer wheel before being polished
in two stages. The second "putty" polishing uses tin oxide which gives
a highly polished surface. The final stage consists of engraving in order
to achieve the minutest details of coat, plumage and eye that are so vital
to the impression made by the finished piece.
Finished Objects
"The craft process means that each relief is different.
Many hands and eyes have contributed to the finished object". Click On
Image To buy !
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are copyright by Maleras and reproduced with friendly permission Maleras
Sweden
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