Let's say a few words about Kosta Boda. Their tale begins over 250 years ago, when two county governors and generals of Charles XII's army founded a glassworks between the cities of Kalmar and Växjö in southern Sweden. The factory, and the village that sprang up round it, took their name from the first syllables of the founder's surnames: Anders Koskull and Georg Bogislaus Staël von Holstein.
Glass manufacture began in 1742, and soon Kosta was appointed official supplier of window glass for the new royal palace then under construction in Stockholm. Seventeen of the original panes can still be seen in the west wing. The palace is also home to a large collection of modern glass, comprising both art glass and utility wares, since Kosta Boda is even today a purveyor to His Majesty the King.
Several other famous glassworks, each with an intriguing history of its own, lie within a radius of twenty or thirty miles from Kosta. These manufacture everything from domestic tableware, vases, candlesticks, dishes and bowls to the finest art glass.
Eight designers are affiliated with Kosta Boda: Bertil Vallien, Ulrica Hydman-vallien, Monica Backström, Kjell Engman, Anna Ehrner, Göran Wärff, Gunnel Sahlin and Ann Wåhlström. In the blowing room, and in the cutting, painting and engraving shops, the designers can rely on the expert assistance of craftsmen whose glassmaking skills stretch back several generations. Close cooperation between designers and craftsmen is of the utmost importance when it comes to transforming the designers' ideas and sketches into glass.
Artistically conceived, colorful glass with a design idiom all of its own has made Kosta Boda one of the world's leading glass companies. New collections and pieces are introduced each year, along with newcomers to series that have already won popular acclaim. New collections and exhibitions by individual artists are constantly on show in galleries, museums, shops and showrooms both in Sweden and abroad.
Kosta Boda is famous around the world for their colorful glass. Welcome to Kosta Boda -- the Artist Collection.
