Celebrating Glass: Ten Years on Bermondsey Street13 September - 5 October 2019

Exhibition Catalogue

Anthony Scala Bruce Marks Cathryn Shilling Colin Reid David ReekieElliot WalkerHanne EnemarkHeike BrachlowJames DevereuxJochen OttKatherine HuskieLaura McKinleyLayne RoweLiam Reeves

Lola Lazaro HinksLouis Thompson & Sophie ThomasMatthew GrantMorten KlitgaardNick MountPeter LaytonRichard JacksonSally FawkesSarah WiberleySila YucelSteve HobbsTim RawlinsonVezzini & Chen

Exhibiting ArtistsOur previous gallery, although an incredible space with wonderful natural light was hard to find, situated on the second floor of a warehouse way off the beaten track. The move to Bermondsey Street where large glass doors lead to a white walled gallery space with the view of the furnace has made us much more accessible. Nowadays our visitors are not only those who used to seek us but also many are newcomers to glass and are amazed by our makers and the beautiful works of art on display in the gallery.

As a gallery we are passionate about glass as an artistic medium. Through the exciting programme of themed exhibitions and artist showcases over the last ten years, we have featured some of the finest glass artists from around the world, from luminaries to emerging artists.

In this exhibition we celebrate work by Peter Layton, his impressive team of resident artists and the special invited guests who have played a particularly important part in the story of London Glassblowing over the last ten years. Each artist has expressed themselves through this magical medium in a different way, creating a diverse and spectacular array of work.

We feel there is no better way to celebrate our successful move ten years ago to our wonderful home on Bermondsey Street!

Cathryn Shilling, Exhibition Curator

Anthony Scala

ParticleOpalescent cast and hot glass, laminatedH23 x W15 x D15 cm£15,000Photo: Ester Segarra

AuriFreeblown withprecious metal leafD4 - D13 cm£500 - £1,200Photo: Ester Segarra

Bruce MarksBirdsFreeblown glassLeft: H40 x W14 x D14 cmRight: H43 x W16 x D16 cm£1,000 each. £1,900 pair.Photo: Alick Cotterill

FishFreeblown glass and wheel carvedH36 x W12 x D12 cm£950Photo: Ester Segarra

Consonance DiptychKilnformed glass with metalH40 x W50 x D10 cm£3,500 each. £7,000 pair.Photo: Ester Segarra

Cathryn Shilling

Colin Reid

Battuto VesselCast GlassH6 x W46 x D46 cm£8,100Photo: Colin Reid

Still Life with CornCast GlassH46 x W52 x D10 cm£17,550Photo: Colin Reid

David Reekie

Temptation of Lies IVLost Wax Cast Glass and Pate De VerreH36 x W39 x D32 cm£10,500Photo: David Reekie

Elliot WalkerContortionistHotsculpted GlassLeft: H17 x W17 x D6 cm Right: H32 x W8 x D8 cm £2,000 eachPhoto: Ester Segarra

Psycho-physical GeographyHotsculpted GlassH66 x W8 x D8 cm£7,000 eachPhoto: Ester Segarra

Hanne Enemark

Laws of Motion Sargasso, half sphere - LeftBlown glass with gold lustred glass moduleH9 x W13 x D13 cm£550

Laws of Motion, Bronze, ellipse - RightBlown glass with gold lustred glass moduleH14 x W19 x D19 cm£650 Photo: Ester Segarra

Heike Brachlow

AquaCast GlassH28 x W30 x D28 cm£8,500Photo: Ester Segarra

JacksonFawkes

Two Views IIICast GlassH73.5 x W46 x D10 cm£12,150Photo: Richard JacksonRight Photo: Ian Berry Magnum Photos

James Devereux

Clovis Aqua and GreyHotsculpted glassH74 x W55 x D16 cm£11,000Photo: Simon Bruntnell

Jochen Ott

Clear Halcyon Cut polished and carved optical glassH40 x W17 x D10 cm£4,900Photo: Ester Segarra

Katherine Huskie

Echinus in CobaltBlown glass with trailsH20 x W20 x D20 cm£2,000Also available in Gold and Rauch TopazPhoto: Red Forge Photography

Laura McKinley

Childlike AbandonRepresentational Images Free blown glass, bronzeand found object£1,050 eachPhoto: Ester Segarra

Layne Rowe

Extra Large Quill & InkHotsculpted glassH70 x W20 x D20 cm£3,900Photo: Ester Segarra

Quill & Ink GroupHotsculpted glassH32 x W8 x D8 cm each£675 each. £3,000 for group.Photo: Ester Segarra

Liam Reeves

Left - Polychromatic Interleave 006Freeblown glassH52 x W25 x D11 cm£3,400

Right - Polychromatic Interleave 009Freeblown glassH50 x W24 x D10 cm£3,400Photos: Sylvain Deleu

Middle - Polychromatic Interleave 008Freeblown glassH37 x W26 x D17 cm£3,400

Lola Lazaro Hinks

EchoCast glass and steelH32 x W30 x D30 cm£6,000Photo: Alick Cotterill

Louis Thompson& Sophie Thomas Ocean Hourglass - Broken Ocean Series

Freeblown glass with waste glass, ocean debris and sandH24 - 32cm (7 available)£1,450 eachPhoto: Ester SegarraImage below from Sophie Thomas' sketchbook

Matthew GrantContour Line Jug and GlassesFreeblown glass with cane workGlasses: H10 x W8 x D8 cmJug: H15 x W10 x D8 cm£380 for six glasses£110 for jug

Contour Line Pendant LightFreeblown glass with cane workH12 x W22 x D22 cm£425

Contour Line Series BowlFreeblown glass with cane workH13 x W27 x D27 cm£740Photos: Ester Segarra

Morten Klitgaard

OroFreeblown and hotsculptedH40 x W30 x D30 cm£4,200 each. £12,000 for group.Photo: Sylvain Deleu

Nick Mount

Still Life with Bosc and NutBlown glass, granulare murrini,carved, polished, assembled,Olive wood stems & Blackwood base.H47 x W49 x D23 cm£7,100

Scent Bottle GroupBlown glass, murrini, surface worked, assembled.H46 - 57 x W10 - 16 x D10 - 12cm£2,875 eachPhoto: Pippy Mount

Peter Layton

Can't See the Wood for the TreesFreeblown and etched glassH27 x W67 x D30 as set£2,350Photo: Ester Segarra

Richard Jackson

From Past Memory XIIPale gold vertical cast glass formwith internal veils, polished with carved detailH72 x W32 x D12 cm£12,690Photo: Richard JacksonPhoto right: Sally Fawkes

Sally Fawkes

Eternal Exchange XCast, cold-worked, sandblasted, mirrored, painted optical glassH36.5 x W12.5 x D9 cm£6,480Photo: Richard Jackson

Sarah Wiberley Bermondsey Street HuesFreeblown glass withsandblasted detailLeft: H12 x W18 x D18 cmCentre: H25 x W12 x D12 cmRight: H16 x W16 x D16 cm£1,080 - £1,200Photo: Ester Segarra

Sila Yücel

Cube Set3D prints, cast glassH7 x W7 x D7 cm£875 each. £1,500 pair.Photo: Ester Segarra

Steve Hobbs

JellyfishHotsculpted GlassL: H15 x W7 x D7 cmM: H12 x W6 x D6 cmR: H15 x W6.5 x D5 cm£600 eachPhoto: Ester Segarra

Golden and Silver Leaf BowlsFreeblown with metal leafH14 x W13 x D13 cm£360 eachPhoto: Ester Segarra

Echoes of LightFreeblown glass, cut and polishedH25 x W25 x D12 cm£3,000Photo: Ester Segarra

Tim Rawlinson

Liquid LightFreeblown glass, cast, cut and polishedH20 x W31 x D15 cm£4,500Photo: Ester Segarra

Vezzini & Chen Gem LightsFreeblown glass and porcelain£620 - £1,830 (S,M,L, XL)Photo: Sylvain Deleu

Gingko LightPorcelain and Brass,G9 LED light bulbH22 x W25 x D9 cm£680Photo: Sylvain Deleu

A Celebration of Colour:Peter Layton and London Glassblowing Book£28Photo: Ester Segarra

Artist StatementsAnthony ScalaThis year marks Anthony's 20th year anniversary at London Glassblowing. His collection 'Auri' is derived from the Latin word 'Aurum' meaning 'Gold. Each of the spherical, blown glass vessels contain a different type of pure gold leaf: red gold, white gold and yellow gold. The spherical nature of the thickly blown vessel forms creates an unusual optical illusion, where-by the gold leaf appears to be suspended at the centre of each sphere by an unseen force.

Bruce MarksBruce, London Glassblowing's studio manager, is celebrating the 10 year anniversary of the conception of his 'Bird' series; achieving deceptively simple abstract forms, which allude to bird shapes. This series has been hugely successful and its evolu-

tion has attracted an avid and enthusiastic public following. He says: “I am a long-time ad-mirer of the sculptor Brancusi. I envy his ability to capture the essence of his subject, creating a purity of form with minimal detail, whilst projecting profound presence.” Bruce’s response has been to strip back his forms, to achieve an exquisite simplicity. Bruce has revisited a favourite series, named Fish. The fish are a slight departure from the re-strained colour use on the birds and employ a technique similar to battuto; revealing the inner colour and allowing light to pass through.

Cathryn Shilling Cathryn became our curator at London Glassblowing in 2010. Her time here coincides with her own professional practice as a glass artist. She mostly uses

glass cane, to create woven glass cloth. The canes are made by pulling molten glass into fine rods of a few millimetres thick. She uses a painstaking process to bring these rods together in multiple layers, then fuses them in the kiln until they resem-ble sheets of woven fabric. In her series 'Consonance', sheets of glass cloth are re-fired and shaped while hot by moulding, bending or draping, to become three-dimensional free-standing sculptures.

Colin ReidColin is regarded as a pioneer in the field of kilncast glass. He is considered to be one of the most outstanding sculptors working in glass. Linking threads that inspire his work are strong influences of nature, which are revealed through the illusory optical effects and multiple reflections

that he achieves within his highly polished work. A new develop-ment is his use of strata of rich strong colour between layers of clear glass. On these pieces, Colin has added extensive cold work in-cluding 'battuto' cutting. One of these pieces was recently acquired by the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge.

David ReekieDavid's work is influenced by man's reaction and adaptation to the society in which he lives. 'We live in a world that grows more complex and difficult to compre-hend, with its tensions and temp-tations that pulls us in different directions.' These conflicts provide ideas from which he creates char-acters and situations that provide him with a constant source of material for his work. In his pieces, 'The Temptation of Lies', he looks at the manipulation of the truth and how society is laced with mis-conceptions and downright lies. 'We are being manipulated con-

tinually through the media and politics to make decisions about what is good and what is evil and what is the truth and what is a lie'.

Elliot WalkerElliot's body of work brings to-gether two themes that he has been concerned with over the past 6 years. The representation of the figure has always been a strong aspect of his work, and his prima-ry focus has been in its external composition; treating the glass as a surface to sculpt, rather than a material with accessible depth.His previous still life series have explored the internal structure of glass and its ability to interpret the inside of fruits and flesh whilst using the profiles of other objects to create a familiar context and format.In his new series he has used the abstracted profile to create a window into a supposed or imagined landscape, utilising the depth and transparency of the material. 'I was interested in creating a less literal representa-

tion of the internal environment and to imply its unavoidably abstract nature. As a student of psychology, I believe that our understanding of the mind, and its true effects on the body, are derived from mostly theoretical constructs, leaving the objective truth open to interpretation.'

Hanne EnemarkIn her series 'Laws of Motion', Hanne is inspired by Newton's three laws.

"A body at rest will remain at rest, and a body in motion will remain in motion unless it is acted upon by an external force."

"The force acting on an object is equal to the mass of that object times its acceleration."

"For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.”

Newton’s three laws have been verified by countless experiments

over the past three centuries, and they are still being widely used to this day to describe the kinds of objects and speeds that we en-counter in everyday life.

Heike BrachlowHeike's work explores the inter-action of colour, form and light in glass solids. She aims to make forms capable of transformation, ideally in several different ways. Her main focus is the investiga-tion of transparent colour in glass. Aqua is based on a concept called D-form, a three-dimensional form created by joining the edges of two flat shapes with the same pe-rimeter length. Results are wildly different depending on at which point the shapes are joined. She has been exploring these shapes since 2015; they have been chang-ing slowly, elongating, thinning.

Jackson FawkesRichard Jackson and Sally Fawkes in collaboration create command-ing objects that integrate concept and material mastery and stimu-

late thought provoking journeys for the senses. 'Two Views' ex-plores two individual understand-ings. Observing from one side, then the other, returning back-wards and forwards, one becomes aware of differences and similari-ties, both subtle and acute. There is then a third understanding, that of the two combined. A solid space between the two opposite overlapping opaque outer planes offers a passage between the two adding further dimensions to thepossibilities of outcomes and interactions. In addition interact-ing mirrored planes lead into the unknown; the possibilities extend.

James DevereuxThe Clovis Collection is the result of laboured experiments by James to literally chip hot glass like stone. After perfecting this unusu-al technique, Devereux produces breathtaking results, monolithic objects with smooth lines that are juxtaposed with fractured edges. Creating these pieces in subtle tones places the focus on the tex-

ture and form of each article.

Jochen OttJochen works with glass as a sculptor would with stone; ex-ploring what the material wants to say. His current body of work focuses on the exquisite materi-al qualities of optical glass. The viewer is encouraged to interact with the material by changing their position and viewpoint to see the work anew. The making process includes labour intensive techniques that are very person-al and include taking a hammer and chisel to the glass to achieve the raw effects. His use of strong yet delicate colour explores the effect that a change of shade or hue may have on the mood of the beholder.

Katherine HuskieKatherine Huskie is a glass blower and designer based in Wiltshire. The Echinus series came from her love of manipulating hot glass and the tactile qualities of it. Each pieces has a uniqueness because

the trails are added individually and then manipulated using tools. The physical act of sculpting the hot glass gives a playful element to their creation. Viewers often want to touch the work and this resonates with the sea urchin shells and the want to touch and hold them, it also links to the dan-gers of touching sea urchins and the fragility of glass.

Laura McKinleyLaura's goblets are inspired by a 16th Century Bavarian drink-ing game glass. Drinking games were popular in many European countries at this time and special objects were made to promote al-cohol consumption in a social and playful manner. When consuming alcohol the tendency is to revert back to a childlike state and it is this that has inspired her intrigu-ing and playful drinking goblets.

Layne RoweLayne's Feathers and Quill and Ink sets are inspired by a poem written by Sana Olivia Hernandez.

The five feather quills each sym-bolise a different figure. A raven's feather, dipping into black ink, symbolises a mourner writing of death. The hen’s feather, brown with a white top, writes with pink ink symbolising a mother writing of love. An eagle feather, writes in red ink resembling a soldier using the enemy’s blood to write of war. The blue feather of a phoenix, with multicoloured ink, used by the artist to imagine a wonderful world. Finally, a swan feather, held by a beauty writing in dazzling white ink of this repulsive world.

Liam ReevesLiam has always been interested in the evolution of technology and the impact and effect that this has on human experience. For this body of work, Reeves has adopted the methodology of computer aided design applications in or-der to impose and apply a set of instructions for the analogue process of making blown glass. To utilize the language associated with digital projection and fab-

rication, Reeves uses advanced glassmaking techniques as ‘layers’, ‘filters’ and ‘tools’ in order to fabricate objects that are planned and constructed in a manner that is analogous with current and future modes of design and pro-duction. The intention is to ulti-mately use the ancient process of glassblowing to create works that are specifically born of a mode of thinking that can only come from the here and now of the 21st century.

Lola Lazaro HinksLola explores that which appears invisible to our perception, or outside our realm of visual experi-ence. Glass directly engages with our visual perception, altering the way we view and interact with our external world. This is used within many fields to hone the character-istics of transparency and trans-mittance; in architecture to create a dialogue between internal and external space, within science to visually open up worlds otherwise unseen, and in technology, for

the transmission of information across distances. Within her work the material itself is the focus, used in conjunction with space to create an illusionary realm of added dimension. The use of clear glass and curvature are combined to explore this part of its materi-ality; its ability to transmit visible light. In doing so, she hopes to engage with our deepest connec-tion to light and darkness and our relationship to space itself, essen-tially exploring the very way we visually perceive.

Louis Thompson and Sophie ThomasMarine litter is one of the clearest symbols of a resource inefficient economy. Around 90% of the world’s rubbish that floats around our oceans is plastic. By 2050 there may be more plastic in the oceans than the mass of finfish. Every part of our planet is suffer-ing from human impact. The time has run out for complacency.Using images of fragments of plastic swirling around the ocean

gyres as inspiration these piec-es use waste glass fragments to illustrate their chaos and intrusion into the natural environment. The pieces represent the continual challenge of the colossal flow of plastic pollution that runs into our seas - currently a rubbish truck-load a minute. They represent a horrific future that our Anthro-pocene age threatens to leave behind if we do nothing about our dependency on plastic and its easy disposability. Broken Ocean received the 2019 Collect Open Award. Matthew Grant‘Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful,’ WilliamMorris. For his Contour Line se-ries, Matthew draws on his love of maps. Contour lines – the car-tographical representation of our landscape – clearly serve impor-tant practical purposes, but they also have a beguiling beauty and charm of their own. The mesmer-ising patterns formed by these

contour lines draw the viewer deeper into the map's landscape, and – before you know it – you’re looking at a vanished world (an ancient hill fort, a disused railway line) as well as the present world of the here-and-now. Is it really too fanciful to imagine that you can travel through time – as well as space – with the aid of maps? Matthew has reflected the beauti-ful patterns of these lines in glass. William Morris’s dictum about the useful and the beautiful is a guiding principle. After a career in teaching, Matthew Grant joined London Glassblowing as a trainee and now works here as an assis-tant.

Morten KlitgaardA significant loss of control is evident in Morten's latest glass objects. He explores and pushes the boundaries of the visual ex-pression of glass by subjecting the surfaces of his objects to exper-imental treatments. The large black volume of glass is blown into a mould. The added texture

combines with the matt/glossy character of the surface to create an organic surface. 'My passion and deep respect for glass guides me through technical and crea-tive processes, often leading me into extensive experiments.' In his recent body of work he has been experimenting with removing transparency by creating layers on the surface. 'I have developed a technique to create an almost glaze-like appearance, made of small bubbles that burst during the process, giving the work an extremely porous surface.' He ap-plies different oxides onto the sur-face during the last heating, turn-ing it into a patina. This results in the surface looking aged, almost weatherbeaten. The patinated colors appearing are achieved by metal in the glass color. A reac-tion occurs and these metallic pigments give a unique depth and pattern to each piece.

Nick MountNick's Scent Bottles are an evolving series of sculptural as-

semblages. His work pays hom-age to the powerful traditions and techniques of the history of hand working in hot glass and the contemporary statement it makes through its concentration on more sculptural concerns and compositions. His work is ground-ed on the value and importance of hand working in the development of identity and the ability to be innovative. The versatility of the material and the elaborate pro-cesses involved in shaping it are reflected in the gesture and tex-ture of these objects.

Peter LaytonPeter is the founder and Artistic Director of London Glassblowing, whose modest beginnings in an old towage works on the banks of the Thames in Rotherhithe have long been superseded. Now, some four decades later, celebrating ten memorable years in its present wonderful location on Bermond-sey Street and having assumed the mantle of a 'crafts institution', and indeed an urban rarity, Peter's

playful response to the current ongoing crisis in Britain is to be found in the title of his contribu-tion to this exhibition, 'Can't see the wood for the trees'.

Richard JacksonAn impression, a question, an idea, are the starting points for Richard Jackson’s work. He records impressions of things and con-cerns he experiences throughdrawing, writing and photography, and these are the source for his sculptures. Working with words, the title for a piece emerges, then with modelling and purposeful drawing as a visual assemblage of his findings; the form emerg-es. The form is the signifier and layers of mark making provide a language; notational, gestural, rhythmically textural, or a few large calligraphic strokes. The resulting work expresses his find-ings. Forms with subtle changing curves, complex volumes and fine edges allude to the complexity he sees in the world. Surface treat-ment, which varies the degree of

transparency and mark making, hint at layers of language and the history and information both lost and known that our world is full to overflowing with.

Sally FawkesThe foundation of Sally’s explo-rations have always been the concept of complexity and the notion that everything is part of a continuous sensitive system of interactions. She studies the inter-actions of the visible and invisible possibilities of space, the place where the physically apparent and the intangible meet, the place where all is potential. Her ‘Eternal Exchange’ series has evolved from her voyages, experiences of earth-ly, unearthly places. The spacesoccupied by mirror on polished curved planes open up new di-mensions that seemingly were not there before, sometimes partially obscured by delicate rhythmical scoring engraved on highly pol-ished flat surfaces. The Latin word for mirror, ‘speculum’ gives us the verb 'to speculate'. Her sculptures

invite you to immerse yourself in the complex realm of what you see, what you think you see and so what is potential.

Sarah WIberleyBermondsey Street is an incredibly vibrant place, in its architecture as well as it's residents. It would be difficult to walk up and down Bermondsey Street without notic-ing the colour of the buildings, the whole area is saturated with dif-ferent hues. It is this vibrancy that Sarah wanted to capture. Drawn from a series of interconnect-ing lines; a simple and basic grid formation, three colours interact and weave together lines and shapes, with an endless amount of variation creating unique patterns within the glass.

Sila Yücel Sila is an emerging artist with a background in graphic design. Inspired by the bold colours, smooth gradients and sharp edges of the digital world, she approach-es making with the concept of

reimagining them in a new mate-rial. Deliberately creating familiar shapes, geometry in its purest form is essential, leaving little room for error. The challenge of achieving perfection becomes an ongoing journey in her practice.Her cube set is a continuation of her curiosity with intense gradi-ents of colour in a physical and translucent form, an expansion of her visual ideas within graphic design work.'Using 3D modelling programme 'Sketch Up', I creat-ed three different models. When each was cast twice and placed together they form a precise cube. Each piece is then cold-worked before marrying all components together for the finished piece.'

Steve HobbsSteve first visited London Glass-blowing when he was given a glass blowing class as part of a birthday gift. 'It was an amazing experience! I was immediately entranced by the heat, the dra-ma and the magic of hot glass and 16 years later I am still here!'

In recent years his knowledge and skills have improved. He has developed his own unique pieces inspired by themes and interests that he feels passionate about. The ‘jellyfish’ series are made by sculpting hot glass, carefully en-capsulating a marine like creature into the centre of a solid piece of glass. The blown pieces combine precious metals such as gold and silver that are carefully placed on to the surface of the glass and then blown to create unique pat-terns. 'Glassblowing is incredibly challenging, but it remains one of the most rewarding things I have ever done and I still enjoy it.'

Tim RawlinsonOn a trip to Japan, Tim observed the interaction between light and water, in particular the vast neon structures reflecting in the ripples; a phenomena that is never static but fluid. The refractive qualities in his sculptures flow in and out of each other as your viewpoint changes; desiring viewer inter-action, with the optical interplay

between glass and light revealing itself. One of humanity’s tenden-cies is to attempt to give order and form where there is none. For instance how we arrange stars into constellations. This desire to give form to chaos is an expres-sion of our imagination. Tim's work invites the viewer to look beyond what is apparent and to search for the unknown. Through casting blown glass components, he captures the quality of ink spreading into water; achieved when the glass is molten, with the flow suspended as the glass cools, producing a moment frozen in time. The interior becomes a painting, a composition in layers, light and refraction.

Vezzini & ChenVezzini & Chen’s work is defined by the artful marriage of hand carved ceramics and blown glass. The collections tread a fine line between functional and concep-tual, with the design duo creating sculptural hand crafted lighting and installation pieces. Vezzini &

Chen bring these two aesthetic worlds together, combining fluid forms with intricate detail, repeti-tion, texture and geometry. Light plays a central role within the work, the designers drawing on their experience of diving, seeing the refraction of light underwater and its reflections on coral and marine life. Inspired by Gingko leaves, the wall light is the lat-est wall light created by the duo. Ginkgo, a distinctive flat-leafed tree from China, is the namesake and clear inspiration for this wall light. Each 'leaf' is carved from thin porcelain, which diffuses light delicately whilst playing with shadows. Gingko wall light is cre-ated by 3 hand carved porcelain leaves and a bespoke brass fitting.