RDS Christmas Craft fair 2014 - The Glass Edit

It’s all over now but I was delighted to get out to the RDS Craft Fair last weekend for both Christmas shopping and GSoI journalistic reasons. Maybe I was just more attentive but there seemed to be more glass on offer than there was the last year I attended in 2012.

Word amongst the stalls was generally quite positive, there seems to be more buyer confidence this Christmas than in recent years and  I was told by many that weekend was especially good for sales.

Here’s  the lowdown on all the lovely traders I had a chat with:  

First up was Terrence McSweeney from Kerry Crafted Glass. I had met Terry before once at NCAD and once at an RDS Craft fair from Christmases past - He's a yearly staple at this stage, generally to be  found in the main hall along the perimeter.  All of Kerry Crafted Glass is made using recycled glass and his priduct range covers, lamps, mirrors, all kind of table wear and decorative ornaments. 

Tara Crystal Chandeliers: Here again we see more of the former Waterford Crystal employees that are putting their long earned skills to use. Tara Crystal specialise in bespoke lighting and occasionally do other commissions such a trophies. All their woks uses traditional Irish lead crystal for brilliant clarity and optics. 

 

Jonathan Ball: Jonathan is an artist and craftsman who described himself to me as being 'into too many processes'. His primary materials are glass, metal and wood. Glass is the newest of his passions, having recently graduated from the glass programme at Edinburgh College of Art.  Amazingly Jonathan only set up his new glass studio in Leitrim this September and has managed to produce the huge quantity of work he had on show in a few short months. 

 

Catherine Keenan's stall had a beautiful display of her both her jewellery and her decorative sculptures. Her colourscape necklaces and matching earnings were doing particularly well and were also featured in The Gloss magazine last week. 

 

 Jerpoint Glass is another yearly staple at the RDS and was looking delicious always with a great variety of colourful vessels and also some decorative pieces. Jerpoint Glass is a family business in Kilkenny started by Keith and Kathleen in 1997 which now delivers to customers worldwide. The new Zest Collection pictured below, was particularly eye-catching.

I didn't get a chance to speak to Ruzica Ruane of Cadenza Glass Beads because she was too busy with customers which can only be a good thing but I think this was her first year at the RDS. Ruzica's lampworked beads create beautiful statement jewellery pieces and if you're interested in leanring some of her techniques she also offers workshops for small groups at her lovely custom built studio in Dun Laoghaire. 

Some more glass jewellery - kiln-formed this time - from Shards of Design . Based in Dundrum in Dublin and operated by Fergus Quearney, this company had lots of playful fused glass jewellery, decorative wall pictures and clocks.

I had a great chat with Richard Parish who's been working with fused glass for a number of years now from his studio in Edenderry, Co Offaly.Richard was mostly selling decorative Christmas pieces at the RDS but he also works to commission on architectural pieces and special awards. 

Some more glassy exhibitors I didnt have a chance to talk to were Agnes Preece Stained Glass Lamps, Celtic Heritage Kinsale and Rainbow Stained Glass. 

Well done to all the exhibitors and we hope you all had great successes from your time at the RDS. 

PS: Also on display over the 5 days were the award winning works from the RDS Craft Awards 2014 - Here's some photography that does them no justice, but it was great that so many people got the opportunity to see them - congratulations again Dennis and Sadhbh! 

Dennis Brown - calligraphy on glass, winner in both the RDS Glass and RDS Calligraphy categories 

Sadhbh Mowlds 'Into the witches eye' - winner of the GSoI award 2014

Written by Meadhbh McIlgorm
GSoI Media and Communications Officer 

Who's Buying? - Glass at Showcase Ireland

Filigrana Vases, BTU Studio Production line 2014

2013 was another good year for Irish craft.
According to CCoI statistics the number of people buying craft has been rising in recent years which is good news for all the Irish-Glassies.
As well as the usual suspects (Jerpoint Glass Studio, Irish Handmade Glass and Kerry Crafted Glass who we caught up with last year) there were some new faces at Showcase Ireland this year including the familiar faces of Scott Benefield and Catherine Keenan. 

Albion - Scott's personal work

Scott was there representing the BTU studio which he founded with his wife and fellow glass artist, Andrea Spencer in 2011. They are based in Randelstown in Northern Ireland. The studio is named after a dated measure of energy, the British Thermal Unit and they produce and annual line of blown glassware and decorative objects. Here’s what Scott had to say about selling at Showcase this year:

"I had really good experience. I thought that the buyers were much more open to looking at something new and even committing to an order in comparison to, say, the British Craft Trade Fair. It was great to meet other exhibitors and staff from the Crafts Council; it gave me an expanded sense of the handcraft scene in Ireland.  

Andrea Spencer, Temporal Properties

The offerings in glass were absurdly few- besides me, there were only three other studios in the Creative Island section. It's far from critical mass levels and so the market in Ireland for contemporary glass remains undeveloped, in my opinion. But the good news is that there seems to be plenty of room for new designers and makers who are working with glass."

BTU's Stand at Showcase 

'Eye candy' - Catherine Keenan

Catherine Keenan was also an exhibitor there, selected as part of the Craft Northern Ireland group. Catherine received her BA in Glass from the National College of Art and Design in Dublin and continued her studies in the UK. Since graduating, has continued to work from her native Northern Ireland producing decorative blown vessels and lamp-worked glass jewellery. She is currently based at Flowerfield Arts Centre in Portstewart.

Catherine's Stand at Showcase 

"I was in an area that was mostly fashion accessories and jewellery, as I was focusing on getting wholesale orders for my lamp worked glass jewellery. However I also brought my blown glass in order to draw people to my stand and also make clear the connection between the blown glass and my jewellery. I got a great response to my work, people were instantly drawn to the colours, particularly in my new 'Colourscape' range of jewellery.  I gained a substantial number of new stockists mostly throughout Ireland, also one on Iona.
In terms of the market for glass in Ireland: I found a lot of shops liked my blown glass and I had some good discussions with higher-end galleries but it is a rather small and select group of buyers who have a particular interest in glass. I think is the main issue that people often don't understand the cost of producing a piece of glass and therefore don’t understand the value.
That said however, when I have exhibited through the Crafts Council of Ireland, or at the RDS National Crafts Competition, I have tended to sell.  It seems clear to me that they are getting the select audience for high end craft, who appreciate the work and quality of blown glass."

'Colourscape' Necklaces and 'Eye Candy' Blown Glass

So there you have it folks, word from the experts is that there's plenty of room for more glass in the Irish market place, especially if we can communicate the production costs more effectively to the average buyers. Thank you Catherine and Scott for sharing your experience with us.

Well done to all the glass-practitioners at Showcase this year - lets double our numbers for next year! 

Written by Meadhbh McIlgorm
GSoI Media and Communications

Showcase 2013

Recently I got the opportunity to visit Showcase at the RDS and talk to some of the makers there. Here is a quick summary of the glass that was on display this year:

Louise Rice

Rice Glass

Rice is based at the Leitrim Sculpture Centre. She is known best for her sculptural work which consists of life like mould-blown forms often combining found objects. Rice’s work at Showcase is a new range of wall art which uses bullseye glass and powdered enamels to depict natural flora. The work is elegant and well presented with an affordable price point. This series is sure to be a hit.

http://louiserice.net/

louisericeglass@gmail.com

Jerpoint Glass Studio

Jerpoint glass is a family run glass studio based in Killkenny making quality home wear products. The studio and gallery are open all year round to visitors and you can watch skilled glass blowers at their trade. At showcase this year Jerpoint brought a selection of their production range which is full of multiple colours. They have also just released a new range called Cherry Blossom with is a soft pale pink and uses optic moulds for a delicate, vintage feel; a great product for Valentine’s Day and springtime.

 www.jerpointglass.com

enquiries@jerpointglass.com

Jonathon Ball

Glass and Metal Artist

Trained as a blacksmith Ball studied glass blowing at Edinburgh college of art. He is now based at the Leitrim Sculpture Factory. Ball combines his knowledge of blacksmithing with his glass skills to create bespoke pieces of sculpture. The pieces on display at Showcase this week include a triptych of large glass anvils. The sides of these pieces are left with an opaque finish and the tops polished to a transparent window through which one can peer inside. The large glass and metal sculpture uses blown pieces of glass and is a striking feature as one walks up the stairs to the top level of the building.

 www.glass_metal_artist.com

Jonathonball323@hotmail.com

The Irish Handmade Glass Company

The Irish Handmade Glass Company was set up in Waterford after the closure of the Waterford Crystal Factory in 2009. They have a passion for continuing the tradition of glass blowing in the area and all the work is handmade at the studio. Their work at showcase was highly colourful, the most memorable pieces being their large spun glass plates. They are also releasing a special Emblems of Ireland range for the 2013 Gathering.

www.IrishHandmadeGlass.com

info@irishhandmadeglass.com

Terence MacSweeney

Kerry Crafted Glass

Kerry Crafted Glass is based in Killarney and is also open to visitors, they offer free glass blowing demos but to avoid disappointment you should contact them in advance of your trip. Their work uses an earthy colour pallet to create functional home wear such as vases, plates and candle sticks. Their glass lamps use coloured firts to create soft coloured shadows in a room. As well as their blown work they have some fused pieces, a range of glass mirrors. 

www.irishkerryglass.com

kerrycraftedglaass@eircom.net

  by Fiona Byrne