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© David lawson
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Effie Burns

Effie Burns Glass fuser
Contact
English
Hours:
By appointment only
Phone:
+44 7816823695
© Julian Calder

Enchanted by glass

  • • Effie specialises in casting and engraving
  • • Her work has been exhibited in the UK, France, Germany and Japan
  • • She was selected for the Coburg Prize for Contemporary Glass

Effie Burns established her glass studio in 1999, and since then she has been concerned with glass and its ability to transform space. She works across a broad range of projects, both sculptural and in the public realm, always weaving something of her personal history into her pieces. In this way her work is an alternative biography told through sculptural objects. Collaboration has been an important part of Effie's practice and has led to the creation of films, gardens and even a mobile museum. She has especially enjoyed working with playwrights and poets on projects with New Writing North and the British Library.

Read the full interview

Works

  • © David Williams
  • © David Lawson
  • © David Lawson
  • © David Lawson
  • © David Lawson
Photo: © David Williams
Deer

Hands can be used to express oneself in a way that words often cannot. As a maker, Effie is interested in the skills that hands have learned and how these skills change over time. Here, the viewer is able to look inside this cast glass hand, which holds a lampworked glass deer. The animals in Effie’s works are archetypes and act as messengers or promises, common motifs across diverse cultures.

Height 10 cm
Width 17 cm

Photo: © David Lawson
Forest I

Effie is interested in the symbolism and recurrent motifs in fairy tales, especially those related to glass, forests, gold and silver. Her works evoke stories of enchantment, in which glass usually plays an important role, used for everything from shoes and mirrors to mountains. Effie uses glass not only for decorative purposes but also for its expressive value.

Height 10 cm
Width 50 cm

Photo: © David Lawson
The Pink Glass Swan

Effie sees the process of working with glass as a form of alchemy. Carving wax, casting, lampworking, polishing and engraving help create new traditions and material possibilities. This cast glass hand with polished and engraved details, holding a pink lampworked swan, is a perfect example of this technical exploration.

Height 10 cm
Width 17 cm

Photo: © David Lawson
Undercover XIII

Effie’s Undercover series explores the beauty inherent in duality. She often models her sculptures on ordinary items such as vegetables to create extraordinary cast glass landscapes, where forms are not always what they seem. This work, presented under an antique glass dome on a wooden base, miniaturises a landscape and brings it into a domestic space.

Height 18 cm
Width 22 cm
Diameter 22 cm

Photo: © David Lawson
Undercover II

Effie inherited this antique glass dome with an ivory hook from her grandfather and it inspired an entirely new way of working. Glass as a material has completely transformed the way we see the world, from microscope slides to telescope lenses. Effie wanted to create a piece that would capture some of that spirit of inquiry and wonder. The glass dome both protects and creates reflections of the work inside – a cast glass form with polished details topped by a lampworked glass tree.

Height 35 cm
Width 14 cm
Diameter 14 cm

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