Meet the Maker... Kristel Britcher
Kristel Britcher, Dimple Wall Sconce for jam Australia.
Glass artist and designer Kristel Britcher’s practice explores sculptural applications of hot glass and alternative processes to create innovative glass products. Designing the Dimple Wall Sconce for jam, we sit down with Kristel to discuss her creative processes and her take on Australian design.
Tell us a bit about your background, how did you get started working in glass?
I have been working with glass since I was introduced to it at University studying a Bachelor of Visual Arts at UniSA in 2005. I went to art school expecting to major in painting and switched to major in glass after spending some time in the hotshop. I had always wanted to be an artist and was really taken by hot glass when I first started working with it - glass blowing is full of possibility, and is also physically demanding and requires a patience and persistence.
You designed the Dimple Wall Sconce for the jam collection. What was your inspiration behind this piece? How do you approach the creation of a new object?
The Dimple Wall Sconce was designed as a lighting piece to enhance the refractive qualities of transparent glass. The dimples on the surface of the Dimple Wall Sconce are creating using a pineapple mould - a blow mould with internal points that indent the glass when blown into it and retains the indented pattern when it is blown up. It was a clear design choice - our studio has this beautiful pineapple mould, and what better way to add interest and refraction to a lighting piece.
Designing a new object is led by my intention - do I want a particular function, do I want to utilise a particular glassmaking process, do I want explore a particular style or aesthetic? Many of my designs stem from wanting to try a process or technique, so often as I develop a design object, I’m also focussing on building my hand skills in the process.
Kristel in JamFactory’s Glass Studio. Photo: Andy Nowell.
Available in three colours, the Dimple Wall Sconce showcases the refractive qualities of blown glass.
The Dimple Wall Sconce is manufactured in JamFactory’s Glass Studio, can you explain the making process involved with this piece.
The Dimple Sconce is blown using and ‘pineapple mould’, which is a blow mould with a positive crosshatch pattern in the mould surface, which puts even impressions in the glass surface when blown into. This dimples the surface of the glass and creates hundreds of points of refraction. When the bubble is blown these indents soften and the surface appears much smoother, but the pattern is still evident in the form and in the shadows cast when lit.
“It was a clear design choice - our studio has this beautiful pineapple mould, and what better way to add interest and refraction to a lighting piece.”
The notion of an Australian design aesthetic is varied and multifaceted. What does Australian design mean to you?
Australian design for me is eclectic, and influenced by so many other cultures and styles. As an Australian designer/maker I like to consider the history and passage of glassmaking to where it is today, I think having context of the material you’re dedicated to only enriches the work you can produce with it.
Kristel Britcher
Kristel is an Adelaide-based glass artist and head of JamFactory’s Glass Studio. Her art practice explores the notions of space, landscape and the natural order of things through sculptural applications of hot glass; while her design practice explores alternative processes to create innovative glass products.
@kristel.britcher
kristelbritcher.net
jam furniture, lighting and accessories are available online and in store.