A trophy celebrating the beauty of VELUX 5 Oceans

A Danish artist has created a unique glass trophy for VELUX 5 Oceans. The trophy tells the story of “The Ultimate Solo Challenge” in its own strikingly beautiful way.

All skippers that return to Bilbao next spring after having completed the race will receive the unique trophy – a trophy that tells the story of one man’s battle against the elements and celebrates the beauty of the race. In the days leading up to the VELUX 5 Oceans race start in Bilbao on 22 October, the trophy will be exhibited at the Getxo harbour front in Bilbao.

Fascinated by glass The choice of the Danish glass artist Bettina Schori to create the VELUX 5 Oceans trophy is no coincidence. Both in her choice of material and in her design the artist provides a perfect match to the essentials of VELUX products and values.

In her studio in central Copenhagen, artist and designer Bettina Schori has spent the last couple of months shaping and welding moulds. The final VELUX 5 Oceans trophy is made of window glass with copper markings and burnishing. The trophy resembles the hull of an Open 60’ - the top class boat model in the VELUX 5 Oceans race - which is displayed beautifully on a metal frame.

- I am fascinated by glass as a material, the endless possibilities of working with it, and the expressions it holds. The special thing about window glass is that it has a fantastic green flicker because of its content of iron. You can work with the green shade in different ways depending on how you work, cut, and shape the glass and the other material you combine it with – in this case copper, Bettina Schori explains.

The beauty of boats
Bettina Schori is no stranger to boats. For many years she has used the boat shape as inspiration in her designs before she accepted the assignment to create the VELUX 5 Oceans trophy. The aesthetics of the glass combined with the shape of the boat express qualities such as simplicity, transparency, light, and air - concepts that are complementary to the VELUX values of daylight and fresh air.

- I have always been fascinated by boats. When I travel, I often find myself drawing boats or taking pictures of boats. There is something remarkably beautiful in the shape of a boat – a shape and a beauty that originate from pure function, says Bettina Schori

Bettina Schori is a versatile artist and designer. She works with and combines many different materials, and she has created such different pieces as snow sculptures, lamps and a glass forest. She received the prestigious Danish Arts and Crafts award in 2000 for her design of glass dishes.

Facts about the artist Bettina Schori graduated from the Institute of Unika at the School of Arts and Craft in Kolding, Denmark, Department of Glass & Ceramic in 1995. Since then, she has worked and travelled all over the world. Now, she is based in Copenhagen, where she has her studio. Bettina Schori loves to create things that tell a story, things that inspire and surprise people. In her crafts and designs she often seeks to reconcile sculptural and functional value, and she likes to experiment with combinations of many different materials.

Facts about the VELUX 5 Oceans trophy
Early spring 2006, artist and designer Bettina Schori, accepted the assignment to create a trophy for the skippers who complete the VELUX 5 Oceans. The last couple of months she has been working intensively on the assignment in her studio in Copenhagen.

The VELUX 5 Oceans trophy is made from traditional window glass with copper markings and burnishing. It resembles the hull of an actual Open 60’, the top class competing in VELUX 5 Oceans. It took Bettina Schori several draft models to reach the final trophy. In the process she first bends and welds a mould made in iron bars. Then she cuts a glass plate to fit the mould, wraps the sides in copper, places the plate on top of the mould, and puts it in an oven. At 800 degrees Celsius the glass melts and gravity pulls the glass to create the shape of a boat hull. During cooling the glass hardens. Then the glass is burnished, and the engravings are cut. The trophy is placed on a specially fitted frame to display the features and give the artistic expression Bettina Schori wants.

The aesthetics of the glass and boat shape give the trophy an expression of openness, speed and transparency. In many ways the expressions are complementary to the VELUX values of daylight and fresh air. In its simplicity and vulnerability the trophy also tells the story of the challenges of the VELUX 5 Oceans skippers – one man and his boat in a battle against the elements.

Media Contacts: Keith Hobbs - Business Services Associates, Inc.
Phone – 919.844.0064 — E-mail – khobbs@nc.rr.com