Leonid Rath
Co-owner of Lobmeyr, the famous Viennese crystal manufacturer
Lobmeyr has worked with such famous designers as
Josef Hoffmann and Adolf Loos; one of its most celebrated commissions is the Starburst Chandeliers at the
Metropolitan Opera in New York City.

The great thing about glass is, it's a very quick [process]. You have to catch the moment of time went it takes shape. When you watch a glassblower, it's like a dance. Every timing and movement has to be perfect. It's like watching a piano player. Nothing comes consciously, it's all subconscious. You donąt think about the shape and what's coming out. There is coincidence [involved] and a huge potential for errors and mistakes. If we do a production with crystal we have to sort out over 50 percent.
 
Born in 1971 in Vienna, Leonid Rath studied materials engineering and business at the University of Economy in Vienna. Together with his cousins Andreas and Johannes Rath he owns the famous Viennese glass manufacturing business Lobmeyr, which was established in 1823. As Lobmeyr's managing director Rath is responsible for the company’s development and production and for international marketing. Lobmeyr has worked with such famous designers as Josef Hoffmann, Adolf Loos and Oswald Haerdtl, and has recently picked up new design talents, such as Sebastian Menschhorn and Ted Muehling.

One of Lobmeyr's more recent and most celebrated commissions are the Starburst Chandeliers at the Metropolitan Opera in New York. We recently met with Leonid Rath at the Met to talk about Lobmeyr's world famous chandeliers, which were designed by Leonid Rath's grandfather in 1966 and given to the Met as a present from Austria to thank the United States for its Post-war efforts.