Echoes of Glass update

Echoes of Glass (part of the Black Country Echoes festival) has been open nearly two weeks now, and we had our official opening last week - complete with press and local dignitaries! Here is the cutting from our local newspaper, Express & Star:
Rather unfairly, there's no picture of Carol Griffin or her wonderful work in the article. I'll rectify that right now, with another photo taken at the opening:

Carol Griffin, presenting one of the pieces from her Traces of Glass series to Keith Smith, Sales Manager at Tudor Crystal
(with Terri Colledge and me in the background) Photo: Rob Griffin

There's also a great video piece by José Forrest-Tennant, which captures the memories of four sisters who all worked at Stuart Crystal, one of the local glassmaking factories - a good giggle.

The exhibition is open weekdays until 3 October 2014, at Plowden & Thompson, New Dial Works, Stewkins, Stourbridge, DY8 4YN.  It will then move down to the Ruskin Glass Centre - opening as part of the Black Country Echoes Heritage Weekend being held at the Webb Corbett Visitor Centre on Saturday 11 and Sunday 12 October 2014.

Echoes of Glass

Over this summer, I've been involved in a project for Black Country Echoes, looking at the role of women in the Black Country's glass industry since WWII. The final exhibition is now up and running at Plowden & Thompson, the home of Tudor Crystal (the address is Stewkins, Stourbridge, DY8 4YN).  Come down and have a look - it'll be open weekdays, 9.30am to 3.30pm from 10 September to 3 October 2014.

As well as my work, you can see the work of three other Ruskin-based artists: Terri L Colledge (cameo glass and enamelled glassware), Carol Griffin (enamelled copper) and Jo Newman (kiln-formed glass). There's also a display of Tudor Crystal, and a variety of Plowden & Thompson samples (including some fascinating industrial glass and special commissions).

In addition to the exhibition, you can take a tour behind the scenes at the glass factory: Mondays to Thursdays there will be full tours at 10am, 11am, 12pm (these will usually include glass blowing and cutting); there's also a tour at 2pm (with cutting only).  On Fridays, there will only be a 10am tour. If you'd like to book your tour in advance, you can call 01384 392525.

After Plowden & Thompson, the exhibition will tour to Ruskin Glass Centre and Dudley Archives. Though I may need to make my piece a little smaller for those venues..!

Vitrum Balticum VI: Optical Outlook

Good News - I am officially an international glass artist!  My Revolution pieces have been selected to appear in an exhibition in Lithuania - Vitrum Balticum.  This is the sixth edition of the exhibition, and has the theme "Optical Outlook" - which I thought was perfect for these pieces:

Revolution, Georgia Redpath, 2014 (photo: Simon Bruntnell)

Luckily the jury agreed, and the pieces are now winging their way to Kaunas in Lithuania.  Keep your fingers crossed they arrive safely - I spent a full day with the packaging!!

If you happen to be in Lithuania over the next couple of months, please feel free to drop by and check on them for me! The exhibition takes place at the MK Ciurlionis National Museum of Art (their website has location and opening times). There are over 60 artists from 18 countries taking part - so there should be plenty of gorgeous glass to enjoy.

Bookshelf: Etching by Leonard Edmondson

Non-fiction books have improved:  Brilliant graphic design, better editing and cost-effective colour printing mean that, as craftspeople, we are spoilt for choice.  There are almost too many glorious books with easy-to-follow instructions and/or inspirational images. I can spend hours in bookshops, trying to pick the best book for my budget.

But we shouldn't forget the old, black and white manuals - and it's still worth scouring the secondhand bookshops and library "withdrawn for sale" shelves to find these hidden gems. They may not be as visually exciting as their modern counterparts - but they often include forgotten or sidelined information which can send your work in a new direction.

This is a lesson I learned from one very special book:

Back in 2002, in the first year of my Craft degree, I was actually taking joint honours with Fine Art. I'd loved printmaking on my Foundation course, and took the opportunity to spend a lot of that first year in the print room. It was during that time I dug out a book my Mum had bought for me in a library sale: Etching, by Leonard Edmondson. You wouldn't think it (I mean, it's a book on printmaking), but this book is almost solely to blame for the fact that I cast glass!

My focus was the collagraph technique, and there's a great chapter in Edmondson's book dealing with all the possibilities this technique offers.  It suggested that you didn't just need to stop at simply printing your plate: you could also try casting the collagraph in latex rubber, plaster and/or resin.  My initial plaster prints made me realise that I was actually creating a mould which (with minor modifications) could be used to form glass. Well, that kept me busy for the rest of my degree...

So, while I'm still drawn to glossy books with great layouts and beautiful pictures, I won't walk past a secondhand book stall without having a nose.  Do you have the same obsession with books (old or new) - and, if so, which books have inspired you?

Winter Light at Waddesdon

Last weekend saw the brilliant but hectic Christmas Fair at the Ruskin Glass Centre. So this weekend, Francis and I decided to escape, taking a trip to Waddesdon Manor. Waddesdon is a French Chateau - but doesn't require a hop over the Channel, as it nestles in rural Buckinghamshire.

Run by the National Trust, it certainly looks a magnificent house to explore. But we'd already decided we were going to stick to the gardens, as our main aim was to see Winter Light, a series of light installations by the British artist Bruce Munro.

As the light faded, we explored the grounds - which are HUGE.  There were shops and a cafe in an amazing stable block (which most people would call a mansion in its own right), and we also stumbled upon a festive food market in the estate's garden centre.

Brass Monkeys (left) and Water Towers (right)
Bruce Munro

But once it was dark, we made our way towards the six installations on the other side of the Manor.  With extended opening hours over the weekend, there were plenty of people and a great atmosphere:  The gardens aren't well lit, so many people were using torches and glowsticks to find their way! But the inky blackness was worth the odd stumble, as it showed the work to perfection.

Mynah Words (left) and Parliament of Owls (right)
Bruce Munro

The scale and use of light was a little awe-inspiring for a glass artist...lots to think about. But what struck me most about these pieces, was their impact on the audience. There was a sense of shared adventure and discovery - and it was lovely to hear all the discussions going on around you.  In many ways it reminded me of Olafur Eliasson's Weather Project in the Turbine Hall at Tate Modern, back in 2003. It changed the behaviour of the audience - everyone was more positive and joyful.

River of Light
Bruce Munro

Although a difficult choice, I think my favourite piece was River of Light. Around six thousand globes on sticks (excuse the unromantic description...) snaked down a shallow basin, the LEDs inside them subtly changing colour over time.  But it was Parliament of Owls which made me laugh - pairs of Fresnel lens had been backlit with LED candles, and stared out from their perches on a telegraph pole.

The hardest piece to capture, was Tepees - with its constantly flashing light tubes it needed a very long exposure to capture any sense of shape.  I ending up plumping for video instead, which you can catch on my YouTube page.

Winter Light is on show at Waddesdon until 1 January 2014.  For more information, visit the Winter Light at Waddesdon page.  Bruce Munro is back for more experiments with light next winter - so I think I'd better block out a free weekend now!

Winter warmer: cast glass in the wild

Recently I've been pondering the possibilities of taking my cast glass outdoors.  I've done some sculptural pieces for a roof garden in the past, and there's no doubt that natural light brings out the best in glass. Light filtering through trees and the sun's changing position throughout the day mean that the work gains a fourth dimension: time.

But rather than the glass sitting on a plinth, I'm now considering how it might actually interact with the natural environment - using what already exists to support and display the glass. So a crisp autumn day this week was the perfect excuse to try out some ideas in the Clent Hills. OK, I had to improvise a bit, as I haven't designed special pieces.  But I think there's some potential to take the idea forward. We need more wild glass!

If you'd like to see more pics, this Wild Glass link will take you to the full set on Flickr.  To find out more about the wonderful location they were taken, visit the Clent Hills National Trust page. It's a great place for a walk, and there are some rather good pubs in and around Clent if you like a Sunday lunch.

Ten Steps for Slip Casting with Wax

I've had some 'work in progress' shots taken this week - including some wax models I've been building (there's a picture at the end of the post). Well, it's finally prompted me to share a technique I learnt back in September.

I was lucky enough to get a spot on the Kiln Casting Masterclass with Angela Jarman at the Glass Hub. Angela is a brilliant, down-to-earth teacher - and was happy to share her experience and techniques.  If you get chance to take a class with her, don't miss out! 

But it was one technique in particular that caught my imagination: slip casting wax in plaster. It's relatively simple - but allows you to make multiple repeats in a relatively short space of time.  (Which, for someone who normally works with cardboard, was a revelation...I have to admit, I almost cried with joy!)  The pieces are also hollow: a BIG advantage when it comes to making a lost wax casting, as there is much less wax to steam away.

STEP ONE: Switch on your wax pot! We've got a specially designed (if somewhat ancient) wax pot in the studio.  You can use also use a double boiler over a hob.  Two suggestions for safety: never melt wax over direct heat, and never leave your wax pot unattended. 

STEP TWO: You need a plaster mould.  It MUST be what I'd call a "drop out" mould - one where you can turn the mould over and your material will...drop out. Something without undercuts, and that doesn't get narrower towards the top. 

STEP THREE: The mould needs to be saturated with water.  Drop it in a bucket of water, and leave it until bubbles stop appearing. (If you wander away and forget, don't worry - but don't leave it for hours and hours, as the plaster will eventually start to deteriorate). The mould at the bottom of this picture has just been dropped in the bucket - and you can see some big bubbles. 

STEP FOUR: Remove the mould from the bucket and blot any surface pools of water away with some kitchen towel - or they'll spoil the surface of the wax.

STEP FIVE:  Fill the mould with wax.  A handy tip from Angela was to overfill slightly - the wax then grabs the edges of the mould, and can't shrink away and distort so easily. Though you probably don't need to be quite as messy as I was in this picture..!

STEP SIX: Wait until the wax starts to form a skin where it touches the mould - you'll see the wax change colour (and become matt rather than shiny).  This skin will get gradually thicker. Once it's thick enough to have picked up any detail in the mould - and to hold its shape, you can tip the liquid wax that's still sitting in the middle back into your wax pot. In the case of my moulds (the triangles have an edge of 100mm / 4") this takes about 3 minutes.  In the picture you can see the skin forming best at the corners of the triangle. 

STEP SEVEN: Give this internal surface a quick mist with a plant sprayer - so the remaining hot wax is chilled down.  You'll see the wax change from shiny to matt as you do this.

STEP EIGHT: Dump the mould (with the wax still inside) back into your bucket.  OK, maybe "dump" is a bit strong, perhaps "drop carefully" would be better!

STEP NINE: Once the wax is chilled, it will shrink away from the mould and should release. You may have to help if you've got drips of wax clinging to the sides of the mould (like with my messy pour...) But if it was a neat and tidy pour, the wax normally floats away from the mould all by itself.  

STEP TEN: HURRAH! You have your first wax.  Now repeat, repeat, repeat - and build something new and exciting from your components. This is what I've been making with mine: 

Work in Progress (Georgia Redpath)
(photo: Simon Bruntnell)