RESEARCH

Shaping Colour: Density, Light and Form in Solid Glass Sculpture

Glass is a material that allows colour to take form, and merges colour, form and light.

This is evident especially in contemporary Czech glass practice, with Stanislav Libensky and Jaroslava Brychtová leading the way. Their cubist-influenced solid cast glass sculptures display mastery through the merging of colour, form, space and light.

The difficulty in arriving at such results lies in the material. Commercially available casting glass not only comes in a limited range of hues, but is developed for small to medium sized objects and appears very dark or black when used for large casts. If diluted with clear glass, the result will be streaky.

During my Master's studies, I began making my own glass colour from raw materials, to achieve subtle variations in hue and colour tone to retain luminosity and transparency in substantial solid glass objects. I realised that I would need to gain extensive empirical knowledge to consistently achieve good results. However, as a working artist running a studio, it would be a substantial drain on time and financial resources to run experiments before casting each sculpture.

How can a practicing artist efficiently make accurate judgements about colour tone and run colour tests and colour melts in a kiln?

I propose to do a systematic study into colour density for solid glass sculpture, investigating the relationship between colour and volume in a transparent glass body, and finding a way of calculating the amount of colour needed to achieve desired results. I also propose to develop a practical way to colour glass in a kiln.

My project will culminate in a body of work using colour and light, demonstrating the effects of different colour tones. My written thesis will contain contemporary and historical context, methodology, documentation of process, visual examples.