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Object Timeline

  • We acquired this object.

1960

  • Work on this object began.

2016

2024

  • You found it!

Casserole

This is a Casserole. It was designed by Timo Sarpaneva. It is dated 1960. Its medium is enameled cast iron, teak. It is a part of the Product Design and Decorative Arts department.

Timo Sarpaneva grew up in Helsinki in a family of blacksmiths and textile artists. He was a member of the generation of designers who shaped postwar modernism in Scandinavia. He worked across media in ceramics, metal, textiles, wood, and glass, which was his favorite. This piece of cookware is an experiment in design with a more industrial edge than was typical of the romantic glasswares for which he was well-known. Sarpaneva was supposedly inspired by his grandfather’s work as a blacksmith to create a modern take on the traditional form of the cast iron vessel. In the 1950s, he introduced color to the glass at iittala Glassworks, a creative impulse that we can also see in this pot. This pot not only offered a cheerful note to the kitchen but also offered a number of practical advantages. The form could transfer easily from the oven to the table or to storage in the refrigerator. The pot’s wooden handle could hook under a notch in the lid to protect the user’s hands from the heat of the metal when lifting it off.

This object was donated by George R. Kravis II. It is credited Gift of George R. Kravis II.

  • Drawing, Design for a Covered Bowl
  • pen and black ink, brown ink [?], graphite on cream tracing paper.
  • Gift of John Finguerra in memory of his brother Jim Finguerra.
  • 1995-164-75

Our curators have highlighted 1 object that are related to this one.

  • Casserole
  • Gift of Mel Byars, The Mel Byars Collection of 20th Century Design.
  • 1990-15-11

Its dimensions are

H x W x D: 16.3 × 20.5 × 19.7 cm (6 7/16 × 8 1/16 × 7 3/4 in.)

It has the following markings

Sticker on underside of lid: 77410 Marking on bottom of pot: “R” with crown above (Rosenlew?)

Cite this object as

Casserole; Designed by Timo Sarpaneva (Finnish, 1926–2006); enameled cast iron, teak; H x W x D: 16.3 × 20.5 × 19.7 cm (6 7/16 × 8 1/16 × 7 3/4 in.); Gift of George R. Kravis II; 2018-22-97-a/c

This object was previously on display as a part of the exhibition Energizing the Everyday: Gifts From the George R. Kravis II Collection.

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<ref name=CH>{{cite web |url=https://collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/420556921/ |title=Casserole |author=Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum |accessdate=23 April 2024 |publisher=Smithsonian Institution}}</ref>