Six, hand-painted, mouth-blown Christmas baubles in beautiful colours, created by Japanese designer Kotone Utsunomiya for Svenskt Tenn in 2021. The Asian-influenced motifs are derived from her own textile print "Story of Flowers".
“As I sat down and studied different plants, I discovered many dots on the petals. It looked to me like a lot of stars, and I felt that I had discovered a whole new universe hidden inside plants. Looking at the Mirakel print, I feel that Josef Frank must have discovered the same thing. I sense a powerful energy in the motif and as with many of his other prints, I feel that the plants appear to be in conversation with one another. I look at Mirakel and imagine each flower’s unique history. I created ‘Story of Flowers’ in homage to Josef Frank. I want to give others the opportunity to discover the same universe,” says Kotone.
– Kotone about the “Story of Flowers” print in 2018.
Designer
Kotone Utsunomiya
Kotone Utsunomiya is a Japanese artist, illustrator and picture book writer specialized in handmade techniques such as lithography, colour pencil and batik work. She collaborated with Svenskt Tenn for the first time in 2018, when she was part of the exhibition Ten Textile Talents on Strandvägen 5 in Stockholm. Back then, she created the “Story of Flowers” pattern as an homage to Josef Frank “Mirakel” (Miracle) print. For Christmas 2021, the flowers from the motif have been transformed into baubles for the Christmas tree.