BOB CROOKS

Bob Crooks is one of Britain's most highly recognised glassmakers. Renowned for the high quality, skilfully executed dynamic forms, he has been producing excellence in glass for over 30 years.
 
Bob benefited enormously from working with Ronnie Wilkinson at the Glasshouse in London in 1987 during a year out from his degree course at West Surrey College of Art & Design.
 
He took the bold step of setting up his own business in 1990, later moving to Devon where he converted farm buildings into a state of the art workshop and gallery for 'First Glass'. 
 
All work is designed, handmade and finished by Bob Crooks himself. His pieces are inspired by geometry, architecture, the natural and man-made worlds we live in as well as the qualities and capabilities of the glass itself. Bob exploits the many properties of the material through refraction or reflection; sharpness or softness, transparency or opacity, working with its fluidity and 'freezing' it as the desired form is realised.
 
Bob Crooks's glass has been exhibited internationally as well as in the UK. He has won numerous awards and commissions and his work is held in a number of public and commercial collections, including the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Crafts Council Collection, London and the Sainsbury Collection, London.

FAY MILLER

American artist Fay Miller began her career as a graphic designer but soon turned her attentions to glass and her need to express her creativity through 3- dimensional objects.
 
 “Interpreting and refining the multitude of stimuli that bombard my brain every day is what my work is about. Every day I see things I want to recreate - leaves blowing in the wind, animal horns at the zoo, buildings rising in the city, political debates on television, seasons changing the landscape and people gathered in joyous celebration. I incorporate elements of whimsy wildness and intense colour. The beauty, geometry and harshness of the natural world drive my creative process”
 
We are pleased to represent Fay's striking work exclusively in the UK.

PAVEL HAVELKA

Czech born Pavel Havelka studied glass at the School of Applied Arts in Zelezny Brod and upon leaving in 1987, joined the renowned Beranek glassworks in Skrdlovice.
Throughout his seven years with Beranek, Havelka produced pieces to others original designs whilst experimenting with various techniques to compile his own body of work.
 
In 1994 he moved to the Svoboda glassworks where he became their resident glass artist.
Some five years later, Havelka joined the Princ Glassworks as the 'Master of Production' gaining recognition for his artistically inspired designs and use of 'cold work' cutting.
 
In 2011 Havelka established his own glass studio where he now produces one-off and limited production decorative pieces.
We're delighted to represent Pavel's glorious work exclusively in the UK.

EMMY PALMER

To combine knitting and glass just seems like a natural form of self expression for me….
 
Emmy moved to Plymouth in 2004 to attend The Plymouth College of Art and instantly fell in love with the waterfront City. Living in Plymouth, surrounded by the sea and the moors provides endless inspiration for her work. 
 
Whilst at college in 2006 she won a scholarship award with Teign Valley Glass studio in Bovey Tracey. Emmy graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in Applied Arts in 2007 specialising in glass.
 
It was during her degree that she started to experiment, combining knitted metals with blown glass and has been refining the technique ever since.
 
"My Del Mar series was developed for my graduate show. They started from humble beginnings but have become more elegant and sophisticated. They were a real labour of love which is why they are my favourite pieces to make. 
 
I love to knit. It's a skill that has been passed down through my family for generations. The concentration needed and the repetitive hand movements make knitting and crochet really therapeutic and I see it as a real form of self care. Knitting has helped me through some of the hardest times in my life.
 
Having had almost a decade out of glass has made me realise how passionate I am about making glass and how much joy it brings me. During this time my knitting knowledge and skills have really expanded leading the way to lots of new exciting ideas!"

ALLISTER MALCOLM

Allister Malcolm graduated from the University of Wolverhampton in 1997 with a BA Honors in Three Dimensional Design, specializing in glass sculpture. The occupancy of  the studio scholarship at Broadfield House Glass Museum enabled a continual launch of the artist's profile.
 
With attention to detail, Allister Malcolm produces dynamic, sculptural forms with a functional twist. Drawing inspiration from the natural world, particularly marine life, he constantly amazes and intrigues. Allisters use of colour entices the viewer and his use of Platinum, Gold and Silver to accent his work add a unique sparkle to bring the piece to life.
 
Allister's first commission was by Tony Blair. He was asked to produce presentation pieces for the heads of state and world leaders attending the Asia & European Summit. He also annually produces commissioned pieces for the Open Mic Awards for the Edinburgh Festival sponsored by the Daily Telegraph. Allister Malcolm's art is available at select galleries worldwide and A Heart of Glass are proud to showcase his work.

COLIN HAWKINS

From his glass-blowing studio at The New Brewery Arts Centre in the Cotswolds, Colin Hawkins uses a combination of traditional glassblowing techniques and contemporary craftsmanship to create his handblown glass.
 
His work is inspired by the qualities of glass itself and the forms and rhythms of nature.
 
Colin's training and experience is extensive and diverse, having been involved in glass making for over 25 years.
Colin trained in Glass at Sunderland University and the Royal College of Art in London, gaining much of his understanding of the medium of glass early in his career whilst working alongside some of the British Glassmaking industry’s traditional and contemporary artisans. 

He has worked on many private commissions and exhibits his One-off pieces and Studio ranges in selected galleries across the country.

LAYNE ROWE

Born in 1971, Layne Rowe is an extremely gifted glass artist whose approach to colour, form and surface pattern has evolved radically since his graduation from the University of Central Lancashire.

 
Having worked at London Glassblowing for a number of years, Layne moved to Brazil in 2003 where he set up a glass studio before rejoining Peter Layton’s studio some years later. 

Layne’s work has been widely exhibited around the world, notably in the V&A’s Power of Making exhibition and annually at Collect since 2013. In 2014 he showed alongside Grayson Perry and Alexander McQueen in Subversive Design, at Brighton Museum and Art Gallery. Most recently, he has exhibited his large installation piece, ‘Solace’ at several important cathedrals, including St Albans Abbey and Ely Cathedral.
 
Now working from his own studio in Cambridgeshire, Layne continues to push the possibilities of technique in every direction, producing a diverse body of work that is both complex and intriguing.

DAVID FLOWER

David Flower has been a professional glassmaker for 24 years and his work is deeply informed by landscapes and nature’s meticulously evolved colour palette.

"I am greatly influenced by the four seasons we enjoy in nature, and simultaneously dismayed by the drastic metamorphosis they have undergone in my lifetime — changes that can only be described as catastrophic.

Recently my work has pivoted towards capturing precious landscapes before they vanish. Works like ‘Amazon,’  and ‘Alpine Waterfall’ are explorations of some of Earth’s vanishing marvels".

David cut his teeth in the workshop of Peter Layton’s London Glassblowing before moving to Sunderland. As Artist in residence, he produced many specially commissioned pieces which appear in private collections worldwide.

Now his work is all about using the material to its best advantage, employing classical forms and gently sculpted shapes in the hope of conveying his simple love of his craft.

MADELEINE HUGHES

Born in Brighton , Madeleine grew up in Newport, South Wales and displayed an inclination for art at a very young age. By the time she left secondary school her focus was on fine art and whilst studying for a foundation diploma in art at the Arts University, Bournemouth she discovered a love for three-dimensional work.
 
Intrigued by the versatility of glass and particularly by the enormous range of colours that can be achieved by the interplay with light and reflections, Madeleine completed a course at the Creative Glass Guild in Bristol which left her hungry for more experience with the medium.
Shortly afterwards, she attended a taster session in glass blowing at London Glassblowers under the tuition of Louis Thompson and was immediately hooked by the mesmerising qualities of molten glass.
 
"My work, therefore, is often led by process and technique as I like to spend most of my time in the hot shop, learning to master new skills and techniques, which I ultimately incorporate into my own designs.The aesthetics of a piece are very important to me and I like to take time to achieve a quality of finish which enhances my design".

RICHARD GLASS

Award winning designer Richard Glass uses an eclectic mix of traditional and modern techniques to produce highly individual, intricate designs that cannot be made by mass produced manufacturing.
 
Based in an historic pottery in Devon, Richard established his studio over 30 years ago and has worked alongside many glassblowers over the years. 
His work captures the essence of his location in the South West of England, with inspiration taken from the landscape and coastline around him.
 
“I am constantly developing new ideas and techniques, using new materials.
 
This, in combination with traditional glassmaking skills that have been handed down from one craftsman to another over generations, allows me to develop ideas at the forefront of glass design The fluidity of hot glass should be preserved in the movement or pattern of a piece. I still believe this and hope you find this true in my work".

RUTH SHELLEY

Ruth Shelley is an award winning glass artist who has been working with coloured glass for over 25 years.
 
From her studio in Cardiff, Ruth produces colourful kiln formed glass vessels which are inspired by her love of travel and observation of colour, balance and tone of nature.
Her gravity dropped vessels create an interplay of light, form and colour that is evocative of the natural world around us.
Ruth is continually experimenting and pushing the limits of glass and her training in Woven Textiles is evident in her collections.

Ruth won the Glass Sellers Award at the British Glass Biennale in 2015 with her striking ‘Indian Intarsia’ piece.
We are delighted to have Ruth's beautiful pieces within our assortment.

IAN BAMFORTH

Ian was born in Kingston Upon Hull in 1955. Having worked in a variety of jobs here and abroad, he was captivated by glass after enrolling on a “Hot Glass” evening class at Buckinghamshire College in 2000. It was ‘love at first blow’ and he was smitten.
 
His enthusiasm and passion for Hot Glass soon prompted a career change, which resulted in him attending the world renowned “International Glass Centre”, Brierley Hill, where he gained an “OCNWM in Glass Techniques and Technology” and an “Advanced Diploma in Glass Design”.
 
Ian specialises in producing hand blown glass pieces. Utilising both form and colour married with traditional techniques to explore transparency, translucence, reflection and refraction.
 
Ian’s influences range from nature and the oceans flora and fauna to the cosmos. The latter being the influence for his most recent ‘ORBIT’ series.

DARREN WEED

The blown glassware of Darren Weed is rooted with a deep respect of traditional methods and processes, driven further by the desire to keep developing technically through design, ideas and execution.
 
Darren has always appreciated Art in which the craft of its production can be seen and strives to raise the standard of his own practice with every piece made.
 
“Working with glass is a demanding experience, often unforgiving but ultimately rewarding. The preparation and attention required throughout making is a motivating force in the creative process. I try not to take inspiration from the material itself but rather try to understand ideas through the process and perceived limitations of glass blowing.”