7 years ago, we employed in our factory a new glassworker called Lily James. Cut to the present day where she has not only honed her craft at work here at Torr, but at home she’s now also a glassworking artist. Having had an interest in glassblowing for a while before joining Torr, Lily utilised her time in the glass shop to work her way through the ranks. All this culminating in her having the knowledge to start developing her very own glassblowing setup.
She started to create her workshop over 2 years ago now, all based at home in her shed. Her goal there was to mash together her technical expertise from the glass shop and her artistic passion. It wasn’t an easy thing to do, and when discussing the cost of her setup, she let us know “It’s not a hobby I’d recommend to a lot of people”.
The style of glassworking Lily does at home is called “benchwork”, which describes a process done by hand, whereas our glass shop utilises lathes to help steady the rotation when blowing glass. She learnt this variation from her own research, spending time learning from books and even YouTube videos. She quickly developed a love for creating intricate pieces, such as pendants, Christmas decorations and marbles.
Lily has a condition called synaesthesia which means she experiences multiple senses crossing over. For some people this might be associating words or letters with certain colours, or sounds being associated with specific shapes. It is highly varied and can be different for anyone affected.
However, Lily wants to let us in to her mind. She spoke about her plans to use art to help her express her synaesthesia. Her next goal being to start creating sculptures to represent how she sees music and she wants to make “big” ones at that.
We can’t wait to see what she produces!
You can find Lily’s art at @FatPigeonGlass on her Instagram and you can even support her work by purchasing a piece. Please feel free to contact her on social media!
