Lambeth Open: London's glassblowers
I missed Open House London a couple of weeks ago, but today, as part of this weekend's Lambeth Open, I visited a fantastic space in south London, which belongs to a glass artist Michael Ruh.
In his light and spacious studio (with some stunning panoramic views of London) two of his assistants showed us how hand-made drinking glasses are created. All I can say, it's not an easy process.
The whole process starts with a big furnace filled with liquid glass. (The furnace's temperature (1100 C) makes the whole studio really hot.) Small blobs of liquid glass are then shaped, blown, turned, dangled and periodically placed in another hot furnace to keep the glass flexible while the vessel takes shape.
After 10-15 minutes, when the final product is ready, it's placed in a cooling 'box', where it stays overnight. The box is like another furnace, although not as hot (only 500C) and allows the glass to cool down without cracking.
It takes a lot of skill and patience to make even a simple glass. One day I'll find out from Michael himself how he comes up with some of his more complex creations.
In the meantime, here are some images from today's session.

