Description
LOCATION- 6km North of BRISBANE city but it can be posted internationally.
Background Info and Provenance
(Written in 2025)
An art glass candle-holder made BY HAND by popular duo, Martini (Mark Galton and Tina Cooper). This piece is unsigned but the makers are unmistakeable- definitely the work of Mark Galton and Tina Cooper- I’ve had a similar signed piece in my early days. Martini pieces are very hard to get- much harder than Colin Heaney’s work. Heaney’s work went for 23 years- Martini’s was in full-swing for about 5 years. Heaney also employed other artists at his studio and there were pieces made at his studio that were not made by him which further increased his output. This was not so for Martini glass.
The partnership between Mark Galton & Tina Cooper really worked- Martini items are stand-out pieces of art. They easily compete with Colin Heaney’s work- many pieces exceed the magic Heaney created. This piece is free-flowing and has the expressive nature that makes HAND-CRAFTED art glass so special. Galton and Cooper probably didn’t have much idea how this one was going to turn out until it was actually made. I’d say the wave in the base section was intentional and planned- the rest of it just came to life as it happened. Martini pieces were made in the Sunshine Coast, Queensland- I’m certain the duo drew inspiration from the nearby beaches for this one. I love free-flowing essence- the intermingling of the beach with what looks like volcanic activity to me.
Martini Glass Studios was established in the Hinterland regions of the Sunshine Coast during the mid-1980s. The two artists eventually closed the studio around 1995 to continue their own individual career as artists. Mark Galton passed away just recently and Tina Cooper continues to work on the Sunshine Coast. Her career has gone to new heights- her work is some of the most celebrated in Australia and is only becoming more valued as the years go on.
Most Martini pieces were signed with a rather rudimentary signature by Tina Cooper but I’ve also seen various Martini pieces at antique fairs around Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast with no signature. The work of Martini is unmistakable.
Art-glass pumped out of factories in the thousands is cheap but rarely ignites any inspiration or passion- most ends up in the trash after a few years because after the trend has moved on the piece is basically worthless. If you believe artist’s work should be done by people and not machines consider investing in hand-made art. There are very few better ways to invest in your home, reduce your carbon footprint and create stories to be passed from this generation to the next.
2505
This piece is in brilliant condition. It looks as though it has only been used as a display piece. It has no signs of use at all that I can see. NO chips, NO cracks, NO repairs, NO scratches. It presents extremely well. There were a couple of air bubbles that burst during the creation of this piece. This is not damage and part and parcel of owning hand-crafted art glass. These burst bubbles are in the cup-section of the piece. Inspect the photos carefully using the Magnification Tool. These bubbles do not affect the piece in any way and have only been mentioned for total completeness. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Measurements. Height- 17.5cm. Across at its widest- 8.5cm. Weight- 435 grams.
PICK-UP from Fortitude Valley, BRISBANE. Pick-up in person must be worked out prior to purchase- thank you. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
POSTAGE is offered internationally. All our Decorative Arts pieces are delivered through AUSTRALIA POST. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
POSTAGE ESTIMATES. . . . ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ To BRISBANE- most of our pieces cost $15 - $18 to send. . . To SYDNEY or MELBOURNE- Small Vase- around $20 - $23, Medium Vase- around $20 - $25, Large Vase- around $24 - $30. Let us know if you need an EXACT COST for postage prior to purchase. The above postage estimates include $2.95 for a signature on delivery. . . INSURANCE against being lost or broken in transit up to the value of $200 is included in the estimates above. If your vase is cheaper or more expensive than $200 this will effect your postage fee slightly. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
A BOXING FEE of around $3.00 is included in the fee above to cover the cost of searching for and storing used packing materials. With the millions of cardboard boxes that end up as landfill every year we don’t believe in supporting the manufacture of boxes for post. Instead of buying new boxes and packing materials and passing this cost onto our customers we spend considerable time sourcing used boxes and then fashioning boxes to fit each item. We do the same for bubble-wrap and foam pieces. This requires a large investment of time, energy, ingenuity, organization and storage space- it is much easier and cheaper to buy new packing materials but I can’t justify taking the easy way out when so much packing material ends up polluting our earth. Our $3.00 charge does little to pay for the time (and storage) needed do this and to pack your item (there is also the time needed to get your package to the post office). This is something we’re happy to do for our customers and the environment. We appreciate your support in this area.
We accept DIRECT BANK DEPOSIT. We send photographic ID of the store owner (Michael Grealy) to all customers at the point of sale, along with media articles about iNVISeDGE with photos of Michael Grealy in them (most of these articles are about 10 years old). Your payment will be paid into an Australian ANZ bank account under the name Michael Grealy (or iNVISeDGE). Please read our ebay feedback spanning more than 15 years for irrefutable proof of our online trading history and reputation. Ebay feedback can ONLY be left by LEGITIMATE PAYING customers! Additionally please be aware that in Australia ALL consumers are protected BY LAW if the goods or services they buy are not as described. (But this should be of no concern- in our first 15 years of trading we have over 1150 positive ebay feedback comments and ZERO negative feedback comments.) ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
On occasions a DIRECT BANK DEPOSIT can be made at the time of collection. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
On occasions CASH payment when you collect your item may also be available. Confirm prior to purchase if you need this. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Other payment methods are available but problematic and may incur additional fees. Tell us prior to purchase if you are unable to feel 100% confident with our trading history and payment methods so we can negotiate something else with you.
Click on "About iNVISeDGE" at the top of this page to find out more about iNVISeDGE.
