Glenn Godden

Email:glenn@steampunkglass.com

Website:http://www.steampunkglass.com

Region:East of England

Technique:Cold work, Flame working

Occupation:Artist

Discipline:Decorative, Jewellery, Sculptural

Areas of Interest:Exhibition, Manufacturing, Marketing

Product:Jewellery, Sculptural, Sculpture

Country:United Kingdom

County:Essex

You can buy my work from:
www.Etsy.com/shop/steampunkglass
www.steampunkglass.com

Social media Links:
www.Facebook.com/Steampunkglass
www.instagram.com/steampunkglass

I choose lampworking for its directness in physically sculpting glass, with only simple tools which become extensions of my fingers as I move the hot glass . With kiln forming techniques the glass is confined, there is little interaction when in its most exciting fluid state. Traditional hot shops have the drama, the molten glass is free, but this becomes a team effort with work having to be planned out in advance. With lampworking my only accomplice is the flame, a super-hot mix of propane & oxygen that I direct just where I need to change the glass. There is no need to explain, to convince others of the worth of my ideas before I start, or stick to a preplanned schedule; its just me, the glass, and what’s in my head - however crazy that might be. It is direct. The process becomes medative as I fall in sync with the speed & flow of the glass. I can change plans at an instant, or remake the same part over and over until its as it looks in my mind.

Glass is a material like no other. It is only enlived by light, is imagined as fragile but takes great heat to change it. For me it the ideal media to show invisiable concepts such as emotions, or tell stories or express concerns in new unexpected ways. My work is as diverse, images gather in my subconcious & link together to form unexpected connections reflecting themes that interest me – science, technology, space, botany – to things that trouble me – emotional trauma, mental health, ecology & fractures in society.
I work directly in the flame with borosilicate glass (more commonly known by the ‘Pyrex’ tradename.) I have a diverse, but often science & fantasy led, portfolio of work. I am currently experimenting with plasma sculptures where I create hollow forms which are filled with rare gases that are energised by high voltages to create moving ribbons of light inside. Along with an ever popular range of dip pens, marbles & pendants I am also working on new sculptural figurative work around mental health issues, and expanding my sculptures from wall hangings to garden displays