Meltwater

#3

Measures: 40cm high x 13cm wide
£180

I have been drawn to the effects of, and controvercy surrounding the effects of 'climate change'. We are as always, in a state of flux, but have somehow been lulled into a false sense of security, so that changes come as a shock. There are perhaps solutions, but in the meantime these changes can be recoreded and, where it is to be found, beauty celebrated. It is from this perspective that I have started a series called "Meltwater". The affinity of glass with water and ice has led me towards an exploration of the effects of the shrinking of glaciers and icecaps.

First I had to find a new pallet. I experimented with blending and mixing my new colours, pulling canes and spinning discs, casting and recasting. I wanted to catch the icy coldness of glacial and Arctic water and of ice with water flowing over, through and from it.

In cast panels it is sometimes possible to create the illusion of seeping trickles of newly melted water, of torrents finding their way through the layers of weakness within the ice. And when blowing, the interaction between different colours can pull and warp a vessel like the contours of a thawing iceburg.