Stained glass windows by John Hungerford Pollen (a preRaphaelite) at Blickling Hall, Norfolk. Were visiting last w/e with a view to laying the ghost of the accident 3 years ago exactly. I think I know what happened. There was a little step outside the bedroom as well as no wall. Had forgotten that. Still, it was the inciting incident that led my path to glass.

Finishing and packaging

All day drill-finishing the edges of the roundels for Cryptical, threading them up on tensile cable, and packaging them for assembly in the gallery. I'm possibly over half way. But soooooooooooo exhausted. Must go out and get some fresh air now.

Pieces for my installation

I particularly like this one - it's a biscuit. Twice baked. I've recorded how I achieved the effect and hope to replicate it. It's one of about 100 hanging pieces for the pâte de verre installation I am constructing for the Crypt Gallery -- Glass Echoes 2-8 August. Picture of finished piece, which is called Cryptical, to be posted when in situ.

Glass Echoes

It's all go now for our Glass Echoes Exhibition which we will be setting up next week. I'm doing a floor plan today; yesterday I did myself a leaflet - more useful than postcards and a business card, I think. Being a co-organiser (one of 5) has been an interesting experience. A Very Great Deal of Work: there's so much detail and it looks unprofessional if you get any of it badly wrong. But we've a template for another time and it would be easier.

Ghost bowls

The rationale of these is that within these ‘deformed’ vessels are trapped convenionally-shaped pâte de verre bowls which are picked up on a gather of hot glass. The ghost of the original remains, but is changed by the blowing and hand-shaping process. Technician and self making them. Lots of floor models; several breakages in the lehr; incompatibility cracks; wobbly cold-working. Everything that could go wrong did. There were tears. But we did manage to do these three that I feel OK about before stopping for the summer break.

Interesting working spaces

Top 2, the kiln room. Bottom: left, the grit-blasting room; right, the screen-printing room. Nice creative environment, eh!

Bookbinding

What's this got to do with glass? Well, when I made The Little Book of Why Glass, I realised I didn't know how to bind a single signature. So I took S & me off to Great Malvern where we used our own marbled papers to produce these (top 3 are mine). Extremely satisfying day. And maybe I'll be able to find an MA-presentation purpose for a little set of booklets on some glass theme.

New Designers

The jewellers and textile artists ran away with most of the prizes at New Designers - which didn't surprise me as I thought they were outstanding. But one of our Farnham glass BAs got shortlisted so that's encouraging.

Also went on the same day to Daughter No. 2's PV at the Collier Bristow gallery where I had a chat to a glass artist (see pic) who doesn't blow or cold-work his pieces at all. Nor does he acknowledge the craftsmen in the hand-outs. His view was that a Director doesn't acknowledge everyone on every occasion, but they do all get credits on the film. Not sure I feel this is right.