Chalet beaver figurines

Special days often come about through surprising twists and turns leading down unexpected paths to incredible discoveries. This was definitely one of those for me! I began my day by starting to draft an article on the Chalet dog and beaver figurines – how it was surprising how limited both were given that one is “man’s best friend” and the other is one of Canada’s national animal symbols. Mulling this, I shot off DMs to Chalet Maestro Bruno Panizzon who worked many Chalet figurines and was with the company from 1963 until its closure. And I also contacted Chalet artist Roberto De Marchi because of his knowledge and expertise as well. I asked them why this was the case and if they could provide any more details. Then I began pulling supporting and relevant photographs from my files.

2010 Chalet exhibit, Cornwall, Ontario. Maestro Panizzon sharing his expertise with me.

A light hearted moment between friends and colleagues at the 2010 exhibit. Chalet artist Roberto De Marchi at right. Antonio Tedesco is pulling Gianfranco Guarnier’s ear and Giovanni Voltalina is at far left.

I heard back from Roberto in minutes. He said that Chalet had copied the Lorraine beaver figurine but in very few numbers and that the Chalet pieces were not etched. On the heels of that message came a response from Maestro Panizzon. He confirmed that  coloured  Chalet beaver figurines were done but that Chalet was not pleased with either the design or the effort it took to hand blow them and did not go forward with production of this form in any great number or in variety like the Chalet fish, birds, cats, bears or elephants.  It was decided that they lacked detail and were not appealing in appearance and that designs correcting this would involve too much production time and work.

So, at this point I had verified information but not much more. Therefore, I returned to pulling pictures for the intended article. When I opened my Lorraine animals file and went to the beavers, one picture instantly struck me and I sent it off to Bruno and Roberto immediately for confirmation that I was correct in believing that I had a photo of an unmarked 2-tone Chalet beaver shown with a Lorraine beaver figurine.  Confirmation arrived back in seconds! I had had it in my files for years!

Woohoo! My day was made and I once again gave thanks for 5 things:

:community sharing of photographs

:keeping exhaustive files

:curiosity and “niggles”

:”Never say Never” and most importantly,

:the incredible knowledge, expertise, and generosity of the artists.

I also changed the focus of the articles to concentrate on this new discovery. Before this morning, I had only one picture of a verified Chalet beaver figurine and its styling is not in keeping with Chalet’s typical animal figurine design. It is extremely unique. Made for Riekes Crisa:

This “Never say Never” piece is from the collection of 50 Shades member Susan Mitchell.

Now to the beaver figurine that has been verified by 2 Chalet artists as Chalet produced:

Newly verified Chalet beaver figurine.

Shown here with a Lorraine beaver in the background, you can clearly see both the design similarities and differences:

The Chalet beaver in the foreground has the overall same abstract design and appears to be much the same size as the Lorraine figurine. It is also 2-tone with a similar colour placement. However, notable differences are that its tail is not elevated, it has a much rounder back which leads to it having a plumper body form and its face is shorter and the head and neck are more compressed to the body. Obviously, the figurine’s 2-tone colour combination is iconic Chalet.

 Comparing the Chalet beaver with the Chalet rabbit  and squirrel figurines shows that they share a definite design similarity. The exaggerated rounded back. This is also seen on some Chalet polar bears.  

Two more Lorraine beaver figurines in additional different 2- tones:

The head of the Lorraine beaver, as well as its tail, is much more elevated than the Chalet figurine. The “id tell.” However, remember variation is the norm with regard to mouth and hand blown art glass. Each piece has subtle differences. This is illustrated perfectly here. Note the difference in head shape and elongation. In addition, the back is more arched and the body wider. However, despite its deviations from the more typical beaver figurine, it is also a verified Lorraine piece.