Water Gourd Vase

Handblown Glass by Heather Kremen - Amokura Glass

"Water Gourd" is all fused glass rollups. That means I made each pattern within the piece out of fused glass. I then combined the patterns to create a plate which I then heated up and wrapped around a blowpipe to blow out into the final vessel. The more complex the pattern the more time and effort went into making it. 

Two things that are distinctive of this technique; first is the highly geometric nature of the patterns. It is next to impossible to get such distinct corners to a pattern made using traditional blown glass methods. Second, is the "flower" pattern on the bottom of each piece. This joining of all the patterns at the bottom of the piece shows where the fused glass cylinder was squeezed down to create a bubble from which it could be blown out. 

I am one of the few artists in the world (12 practising artists last time I counted) to blow glass using fused glass murinni. This is because it requires knowing a whole different technique of glass working (fusing vs glass blowing), extra training to work the glass while molten, patience to create all the patterns, extra equipment (kilns or a hot shop with a furnace, glory holes (reheating chambers) etc) and a whole second inventory of glass that cannot be used with blown glass. Another hurdle for people is the need of at least 2 skilled assistants, as well as the artists, to be able to successfully create each piece.

15 x 26 cm

This product is considered to be fragile and cannot be shipped through our online portal. Please contact us for a freight quote info@oragalleryco.nz