the earth, as though he were already a part of the sky. Even the dark sadness of the 
captured puma behind the bars of his cage has a meiancholy poetry. 
FIGURES AND GROUPS 
Drawn out from blue, green, brown, red, black, gray or crystal rods, Fritz Lampl’s fig- 
ures fuse to a perfect unity of material, color, shape and motion. 
The tension of the body is one of restrained power. The drawn glass rod still holds the 
heat of the flame. The momentum of the frozen motion can still be feit in the gestures 
of the figures. Figures dancing with fragile elegance on a rectangle or triangle of glass 
rods, appear to overcome gravity with ease. The dancer fulfills his dream of flying, 
barely touching the floor with the tip of the foot. Even the fighting figures appear light- 
footed and dance-like. 
There’s no question that figural creations have a special place among „Bimini“ glasses. 
They occupy only a small ränge of numbers (occasional numbers beyond 980, other- 
wise the series of number-letter combinations from 990 to 999). Dance and sport dom- 
Inate as themes. Formations of gallant groups, such as the Kiss-on-the-Hand, combine 
the momentum of controlled motion with the flow - hardened but still hinted at - of the 
drawn glass rods into a scene of graceful figures (Cat. nos. 631, 632). „Fruit Bearer“ 
shows a harmony of shape, color and composition, along with a masterful glass tech- 
nique, in a perfect balance of motion and repose (Cat. nos. 640, 641). 
Expressive gestures and the elegance of dancing (Cat. nos. 613, 647 ff.) characterize 
many of the figures, including the winged angel and demons (Cat. no. 669), devils (Cat. 
nos. 670, 671) and good luck charms (Cat. no. 679). 
The various versions of the „Girls“ could be considered a symbol of eurythmy, a har 
mony of movement and rhythm (Cat. nos. 681-684). Blue figures are recorded in a 
snapshot of a hunt: the archer at the moment of greatest tension before the shot, the 
dog rushing forward, the prey leaping against disaster. 
There is proof that „Bridge,“ a composition made up of three figures, exists in two ver 
sions (Cat. nos. 692, 693): the wind instruments being held between the knees or by 
Standing figures. The mannered gesticulations of a famous dancer are recorded many 
times, both in Sketches and in giass figures: a guest appearance by Josephine Baker is 
interpreted by Fritz Lampl in delicate, often grotesquely contorted glass figures 
(„Charleston,“ Cat. nos. 696 ff.). Josephine Baker appeared on March 1, 1928, at the 
Johann Strauss Theater in Vienna in the revue, „Black on White“ (in 1980, the Vienna 
Theater Museum arranged an exhibition on this subject in the Theseus Temple in 
Vienna). A photograph with a dedication to Fritz Lampi in the dancer’s own hand bears 
witness to this event and the personal acquaintanceship. 
On the other hand, some of the figures, probably from the last „Bimini“ period, cannot 
be connected with any of the model numbers. Many have proof of origin through Com 
pany marks (Cat. nos. 713, 723, 726, 727), some through Contemporary photographs. 
One of these is the long-legged drunkard hanging on tö the lamp post like a person on 
stilts who suddenly seeks support (Cat. no. 717). 
Several models are unmistakably „Bimini“ even though no absolute proof is possibie: 
the dancing figure (Cat. no. 716) shows incontrovertible abstraction, elegance and bal 
ance. 
A love of music is reflected in the seated cavalier with blue flute (Cat. no. 724), the Cel 
list, entirely in black (Cat. no. 725), in the „Serenade“ (Cat. no. 726) or in the „Power of 
Music“ (Cat. no. 727). 
Figures and groups in crystal are to be placed towards the end of the „Bimini“ era (Cat. 
nos. 728-730). They are partially documented (Cat. no. 732) in Contemporary publi- 
cations. 
466