A Creative Trifecta: James Turrell, The Glenturret, and Lalique Introduce Limited Edition Whisky Decanter
SCOTCH WHISKY
The Glenturret unveils 'Eight Decades', a unique collaboration with luxury glassmaker Lalique and acclaimed American artist James Turrell.
3 MINS READ TIME
WORDS BY CLAUDIO CALDEIRA
PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF LALIQUE/THE GLENTURRET
Forging a novel partnership, Scotland's long-standing distillery, The Glenturret, presents 'Eight Decades'’ This project, crafted in conjunction with luxury glassmaker Lalique and renowned American artist James Turrell, famous for his enchanting light and space installations, signals Turrell's inaugural endeavor into whisky decanter design, introduced at Lalique's brand-new Art Gallery in Burlington Arcade, London, on May 16th.
In honor of the artist's eightieth year and as a homage to the time-honored craftsmanship of The Glenturret distillery and Lalique’s master glassmakers, the 'Eight Decades' decanter has been produced in an ultra-limited edition of only eighty worldwide. This marks the third time James Turrell has teamed up with Lalique, following two perfume bottles and elegant light panels, creating a cohesive triptych. Significantly, this is Turrell's initial foray into making art on a smaller scale, a departure from his usual large-scale, immersive artworks.
JAMES TURRELL
Photo: Michel F. Sarda
Transforming the artist's vision for 'Eight Decades' into reality necessitated comprehensive design work, including initial drawings, mold manufacturing, hot glass trials, and prototyping. The bottle's shape and color, distinguished by a neck embedded with violet crystal, created a technical conundrum for Lalique's artisans in their Alsace workshop. The concluding design exhibits an ideal, minimalist silhouette: a fusion of gentle curves and slender lines on a rectangular base. The stopper, a pyramid hewn from deep blue crystal, pays homage to the monumental towers of Egypt, where the light was ceremonially significant.
Within the vessel, the whisky has been carefully curated by The Glenturret’s Whisky Maker, Bob Dalgarno, leveraging insights from his dialogues with James. It features a blend of eight casks, each from 1987 to 1998, reflecting a distinctive aspect of the eight decades of James Turrell’s life and artistic practice.
The final whisky is Dalgarno's rendering of art in liquid form: it emits an array of aromas like dark dried fruit, chocolate orange, ginger cake, red berries, fresh apples, and a hint of smooth oak.
