The Melbourne Designer Bringing New Vitality To The Artwork Of Stained Glass
With a background in graphic design and expertise within the structure and inside design business, ‘design’ has all the time been part of Eloise McCullough’s life. Even nonetheless, she by no means fairly imagined having a profession in stained glass.
‘My dream has all the time been to construct a model and work for myself, and in lockdown I began up a enterprise referred to as FIGR with my buddy and enterprise companion Eloise O’Sullivan,’ Eloise says. It was a much-needed outlet, however she nonetheless felt ‘stressed’ and have become interested in programs which may ‘feed’ her creativity.
‘I found a course [at Melbourne Polytechnic in Designed Glass and Glazing] and it was a video on the course web page of a younger feminine artist, Nadine Keegan, that reeled me in and resonated with me.’
‘The video confirmed Nadine working in her Melbourne interior north studio, working with stained glass in a manner I’d by no means seen earlier than. It broke down my preconceived concepts of stained glass being reserved for church buildings.’
It resonated with Eloise a lot that she determined to enrol. As soon as she began studying the crafts of leadlight, stained-glass portray and copper foiling, she discovered it laborious to change off – and ‘by no means regarded again’.
Now together with her personal follow, Fools Glass, Eloise been engaged on modern, customized lead-light home windows for properties and framed items, along with a made-to-order vary of kiln-fused glass coasters! ‘It was necessary to me to supply an merchandise that was accessible, so that individuals can inject some persona of their house and have tangible handcrafted glass with out the hefty price ticket,’ she explains.
Whereas the work is ‘not all glamorous’ and stuffed with ‘inevitable’ errors, breakages and accidents from chopping glass and soldering, Eloise is happy to be a part of the rising artists and makers who’re reimagining the painstaking follow for a contemporary viewers.
‘I acquire inspiration from my glass friends resembling Poppy Templeton and Jodie Mae – we every have our personal distinctive aesthetic and strategy glass with design sensibility,’ she notes. ‘By way of sharing our works and course of on social media we’re cultivating a renewed appreciation for the normal craft. It’s clear that over the previous couple of years there’s been a shift from mass manufacturing to an appreciation for high quality craftsmanship.’
And we’ve acquired no doubts that Eloise’s stunning work will probably be a part of the next-generation’s legacy of glass artwork, guaranteeing it continues to evolve for one more thousand years!
Discover out extra about Fools Glass and enquire a couple of fee right here.
