a life IN GLASS

Stunning works at London Glassblowing celebrate the Past and Present of the studio team from 1976 to present day

London Glassblowing Glass Vase Bermondsey Street

in October London Glassblowing will be hosting an exhibition called ‘Past and Present’ to celebrate its 35th anniversary this year and will include pieces by Peter Layton’s current team as well as some of those who have worked with him in the past. It will also show work by Louis Thompson, whose stunning vessels were chosen for the 2012 Jerwood Makers Exhibition; Layne Rowe whose current experimentation with coloured glass canes incorporated into the blown form, has resulted in some truly exquisite vessels; Bruce Marks, whose African roots inject some quirky, figurative elements into his work and also the work of Anna Dickinson, who normally only ever shows in Switzerland.

Peter Layton uses his understanding of composition and colour to exploit to the full the potential of glass as a three dimensional canvas. His works are inspired by the world around him. For example, his current Glacier series, revisits a previous body of work and is inspired by the heavy snows that covered the English landscape earlier last year. Recently he was asked by the Royal Academy to interpret some of David Hockney’s paintings and accompany his exhibition there earlier this year. Peter’s series, entitled Arrival of Spring, after one of Hockney’s major paintings, perfectly illustrates the painterly qualities of glass.

London Glassblowing Bermondsey Street Glass Poppies
Peter Layton’s London Glassblowing studio came to life in the mid 70’s as a bold experiment by its founder, who began his artistic career working in ceramics. Having stumbled upon his true metier, Peter set up London Glassblowing’s first studio in Rotherhithe in 1976, and developed the studio and gallery to its present position as one of Europe’s leading creative hubs.

After relocating from Rotherhithe in the mid 1990s, the studio spent a period of 15 years at the Leathermarket in Weston Street, producing large-scale sculptural and architectural glass as well as developing his unique blown glass styles. It was only three years ago that Peter decided to make the short move to one of London’s more trendy locations; Bermondsey Street, where the studio and gallery are now situated.

London Glassblowing Bermondsey Street Peter Layton

“Molten glass, shaped from a fireball, seduces all of those who fall under its spell

The gallery takes an active part in Bermondsey’s own cultural scene, regularly
exhibiting national and international talent in its space with shows that have varied from glass art through to catwalk evenings. Passers-by are tempted in by the visual delights of dynamic colours and light from spectacular pieces of glass. Through the doors of the gallery one can glimpse the glow of the furnaces in the working studio beyond. The alluring properties of molten glass, as it is shaped from a fireball straight from the furnace, mesmerise, entertain and seduce all who fall under its spell.

To coincide with this show, Peter is launching a new book of the same name, ‘Past and Present’. This book is a celebration of glass art as seen through the life and work of Peter Layton and his studio – one of the longest running in Europe.

LONDON GLASSBLOWING STUDIO & GALLERY
62-66 Bermondsey Street
SE1 3UD
t: 020 7403 2800
w: www.londonglassblowing.co.uk

London Glassblowing Bermondsey Street Team Working

The London Glassblowing team at work

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