Winslow Anderson – 1917 – 2007
Former Blenko Glass designer Winslow Anderson passed away on December 10th, 2007. During his years at Blenko, from 1947 to 1953, Anderson moved the Milton glass producer fully into modernism. The designs he created while at Blenko are among the best the company ever produced.
In addition to his time at Blenko, Mr. Anderson led a full and productive life. His obituary is as follows:
Artist, designer, and sailor, Winslow Anderson, 90, died Monday, December 10, 2007 at his home. The son of the late Paula and George Anderson, he was born May 17, 1917 in Plymouth, Mass. In his youth he wanted to design swift boats, but instead he was recruited into the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University, where, in 1947, he graduated magna cum laude with Departmental Honors in Industrial ceramic Design. During WWII he served in the United States Army in Pawling, NY as a topographical draughtsman. While trained as a ceramist, upon graduation Mr. Anderson was hired as the first full-time designer at Blenko Glass, Milton, West Virginia. During his six year tenure, 1947-1953, he was instrumental in creating new, modern functional designs in vibrant colors, which greatly enhanced Blenko’s reputation. He often told friends how the glass itself was the best designer: he stated, “The glass did things in the process of being made; it revealed new ideas to me.” The Museum of Modern Art presented Anderson with a “Good Design Award” for his bent neck decanter, which acknowledged his elegant, simplified designs in 1950. In 1953 he went to work for the Lenox China and Crystal Company in Trenton, New Jersey as both designer and the design director. He remained there until his retirement in 1980, when he chose to move back to West Virginia. Upon retirement Winn sailed his boat, the Ti Fi, painted and traveled the world. He will be remembered by his friends as a witty storyteller, a collector with a most discerning eye and as a visionary designer. Donations in his memory can be made to either the Huntington Museum of Art or the Putnam County Animal Shelter.
Goodbye Mr. Anderson. Thank you for the what you left for us to remember you by – we always will.
