Glenn Godden is a sculptor who specialises in working coloured borosilicate glass using a technique called ‘Lampworking’ where glass is directly shaped & manipulated in an oxygen/propane flame to create unique & diverse works ranging from jewellery to large complex sculptures. Borosilicate glass – often known by the ‘Pyrex’ trade-name – has a unique clarity making it ideal for highly complex ‘space-scapes’ inside solid glass. Real 3D effects inside are magnified & the optics create the illusion of depth & distance in marbles that can be held in the hand, complete universes the viewer can escape into.

A large range of jewellery, dip pens, marbles & other glass can be ordered directly at www.etsy.com/shop/steampunkglass and shipped worldwide or email glenn@steampunkglass.com

Why lampworking?

 “I choose lampworking for its directness in physically sculpting glass, with only simple tools which become extensions of my fingers as I move the hot glass . With slumping, casting & kiln forming techniques the molten glass is confined, there is little interaction when in its most exciting fluid state. Traditional hot shops have the drama, the molten glass is free, but this becomes a team effort with work having to be carefully planned out in advance.

With lampworking my only accomplice is the flame, a super-hot mix of propane & oxygen that I direct just where I need to change the glass. There is no need to explain, to convince others of the worth of my ideas before I start, or stick to a preplanned schedule; its just me, the glass, and what’s in my head – however crazy that might be. It is direct. I can change plans at an instant, or remake the same part over and over until its as it looks in my mind.”