Elephant paperweight by Gunnar Cyren for Dansk International Ltd

Swedish silver, glass, and industrial designer. After completing an apprenticeship in silversmithing and a period of study at the Konstfackskolan in Stockholm Cyrén worked as a silversmith in Uppsala. In 1959 he was appointed to the Orrefors glassworks, where he mastered the new medium. He soon attracted critical attention through work exhibited at Svensk Form in Stockholm in 1961 and 1963. Working closely with the factory's glassblowers his work became widely known for its use of bright colours that were vividly seen in his Pop glasses of 1966. He was awarded the prestigious Lunning Prize in the same year. Following a period as artistic director at the company he returned to his home town of Gävle in 1970 and began designing for Dansk International, a firm with a high reputation for Scandinavian tableware. In 1973 he once more took up silversmithing, establishing a studio and shop and from 1976 worked for Orrefors on a freelance basis. From:http://www.answers.com/topic/gunnar-cyr-n

Founded by American entrepreneur Ted Nierenberg in 1954 Dansk soon established a reputation for well-designed tableware embodying the elegant post-war Scandinavian aesthetic which married craft traditions to industrial production. The Dansk range encompassed products in glass, ceramics, wood, plastics, and stainless steel. Although the company mainly employed Scandinavian designers such as Jens Quistgard, its principal designer for many decades since its inception, it also utilized other well-known figures such as the American Jack Lenor Larsen. Although Dansk's head offices are in New York the firm has more than a hundred factories across the world, together with many retail outlets.

From: http://www.answers.com/topic/dansk-international-designs-ltd