David Smallhouse (Born 1949) American, Orient & Flume Iris Art Glass Vase. Classic design from early in the artist's tenure, with hints of the striking iridescence he would eventually become famous for and pretty floral and grass designs all around the exterior. Signed on the underside. 

Size: 4 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 11 1/2 in. 

David Smallhouse was born in Bakersfield, California in 1949, and after serving a tour in Vietnam with the United States Army he was severely traumatized, eventually discovering glassmaking as a way to cope with the psychological damage. He earned his Bachelors of Arts in Ancient & Classical History at California State University in Chico and taught for a while, eventually marrying and having four children. In 1980 he became a master glassblower at Orient & Flume, and in 2001 he opened his own studio, Smallhouse Art Glass. Some of his most popular designs include the use of lapis lazuli in jars, urns, and vases, and his poison dart frog series was added to the permanent collection of the Smithsonian Institution. In 2022 he retired for good and closed Smallhouse Art Glass in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, but his exuberant, whimsical, and delicate pieces have only become more and more collectible since then. 

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