What drew you to blown glass?
I love the surprise element. I might be planning something for months on paper and using other materials, but when it comes to the making stage, decisions need to be made immediately. Blown glass, once in the hot shop, goes from extreme heat to quickly cooling.
Which are the specific techniques you master?
I’ve been reinterpretating the classic Swedish technique of Graal, creating a type of pattern on my glass vessels. I draw with diamond engraving wheels cutting patterns through layers of coloured glass, playing with negative and positive grounds. By cutting away the opaque coloured glass, I make these pieces more fluid, light and permeable.
©Michele Oberdieck
Where did you draw inspiration for your Ostfriesia series?
I was inspired by the colours of the landscape where my father is from. Ostfriesland is an area of Northern Germany where the North Sea breaks on the Friesan plain, creating a lattice of canals, grasslands and dunes.
What is so special about this place?
The wide horizon brings a clarity to the delicate colourings of soft greys, delft blues and celadon evident in the flat landscape.