My normal glass casting method is based on the collagraph printing technique: I build up a relief collage in textured paper and card, from which I make my moulds.
And this is how I started the project - working in my sketchbook with patterns based around the diamond cuts on the decanters, and experimenting with different textures and relief levels.
But it just didn't seem right to be working in a two dimensional format: it wasn't doing the decanters justice. The sketchbook work did, however, remind me of a folded box form from the book Paper: making, decorating, designing by Beata Thackeray
Using this as my starting point, I started researching / experimenting with folded paper forms - again using the diamond cuts as the inspiration.Anyone interested in this type of folded form should definitely take a look at the work of Paul Jackson. As well as doing brilliant paper sculpture of his own, he has written books covering all forms of paper engineering. They all include great "basics", ideas to play with and real inspiration:
- Structural Packaging
- Folding Techniques for Designers
- The Pop-Up Book
However, once you start making taller three-dimensional forms in glass, you need much longer kiln times - in particular because they need to be annealed for such a long time to avoid temperature differences within the piece. For that reason I was keen to simplify - and perhaps create a "unit" which could be repeated to make a larger form. I took the yellow folded form above as my starting point (because it reminded me of Sam the Eagle from the Muppets..!)
By cutting down the height of the yellow model to just two layers (between the horizontal lines) and adding a top and a base, I found a unit which would tessellate - and also sit - in a number of different ways. I now had to think about how I could go about casting multiples in glass. More about that next week..!
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