Glenturret, Lalique and James Turrell Team Up for 'Eight Decades' Collaborative Project
The Glenturret, Scotland’s Oldest Working Distillery, presents Eight Decades, a collaboration with Lalique and renowned American artist James Turrell, who is famed worldwide for working with light and space to create artworks that engage viewers with the limits and wonder of human perception.
It is the first time the celebrated artist has worked on a whisky decanter, presented for the first time at the new Lalique Art Gallery in Burlington Arcade, London on 16th May.
The Eight Decades decanter is an ultra-limited-edition – just eighty worldwide – created as a celebration of the artist’s eightieth year and a poetic tribute to generations of craftsmanship – both The Glenturret distillery (since 1763), and Lalique’s master glassmakers (since 1888). Following the launch of two perfume bottles and beautiful light panels, this is the third time James Turrell has collaborated with Lalique, creating a perfect triptych; it is the first time that he has created pieces of art on a small scale, as his works are usually large-scale, immersive, temporary or in situ.
Realising the artist’s vision for Eight Decades required an immense amount of design work, from drawings to mould manufacturing, hot glass trials and prototypes. The shape and colour of the bottle, which has a neck injected with violet crystal, created a technical difficulty for the Lalique artisans in the factory in Alsace, ensuring that the crystal be evenly distributed to offer a transparency that would magnify the amber-coloured whisky inside.
The final design has a perfect, pared down silhouette: flowing curves combined with tapered lines and a rectangular base. The pyramidal shape of the deep blue crystal stopper is inspired by Egypt and its monuments in which light served ceremonial purposes. Silvio Denz, CEO and Chairman, Lalique comments that “The collaboration with Lalique and James Turrell makes perfect sense when you recall that René Lalique was known as the ‘sculptor of light’. This collaboration brings together James Turrell’s universe, the house of Lalique and The Glenturret in an emotional journey and one of which I am extremely proud. An enduring approach to savoir faire and taste aligns with James Turrell’s understated, futuristic aesthetic. Eight Decades is the incarnation of excellence at every level – the perfect balance and a beautiful work of art – a celebration of individuals who contribute to the process over generations – a trophy in their honour.”
The Eight Decades decanter
Inside, the whisky has been selected by The Glenturret’s Whisky Maker, Bob Dalgarno using insight from his conversations with James. Drawn from eight casks, ranging from 1987 through to 1998, each represents a different facet of the eight decades of James Turrell’s life, his character and vocation. The resulting whisky is Bob’s interpretation of art in a liquid form: aromas of dark dried fruit, chocolate orange, ginger cake, red berries, fresh apples, and softer oak. On the palate, gentle wood spices, rich fruit cake laced with treacle and honeycomb balanced with burnished oak provide a long, mellow finish. James Turrell mentions that“I love a single malt whisky. I described the whisky my father enjoyed as inspiration for the team at The Glenturret: my father’s description of civilisation was a fine whisky and a good cigar. There is also the idea to relate the decanter to the work in crystal I have previously completed with Silvio and Lalique - I wanted this piece to have the same sensibility as the perfume bottles. A tribute to Egypt, pyramids and stupas, these architectural forms are crosscultural. They move something deep within me.”
John Laurie, Managing Director, The Glenturret said, “It is a proud moment for us to be working with James Turrell - a lot of hard work and emotions have gone into designing and creating this decanter. The Eight Decades decanter encapsulates The Glenturret’s very essence: an understated aesthetic, crafted by many talented hands who are all custodians of the skills required to create such a beautiful decanter and liquid. The design of Eight Decades is a departure from more traditional whisky bottles and a homage to the artist as it commemorates his eightieth birthday – we feel it is a piece of art just as much as it is a whisky decanter holding a delicious liquid.”
Eight Decades is priced at £80,000 and will be primarily available for pre-orders in May through privateclient@theglenturret.com or by contacting your Lalique Boutiques on Conduit Street and in Burlington Arcade, London.
Tasting Notes:
Aromas of dark dried fruit, chocolate orange, ginger cake, red berries, fresh apples, and softer oak on the nose and on the palate; gentle wood spices, rich fruit cake laced with treacle and honeycomb balanced with burnished oak provide a long, mellow finish.
41.5% ABV, Non-chill filtered and natural colour.
All images belong to The Glenturret
