Rachel Welford - life, art and architectural glass

My blog has moved!

2011-03-25T11:28:00.006Z

Sorry but I'm not using this blog any more. Please have a look at my new blog site

www.rachelwelford.co.uk

Here are a few images of my recent solo exhibition 'In A Different Light', showing until 1st April 2011. More images are on my other blog www.rachelwelford.co.uk

Apologies for any inconvenience these changes cause, and thanks for looking.

many thanks Rachel

Saint Gobain Glass UK - the installation process

2010-10-04T23:34:00.013+01:00

Here's a few shots of the installation - a nerve wracking experience but handled with great expertise, care and attention to detail by ng developments. They also managed to manoeuvre the very very very heavy 2.5m high glass panels into place without even a flinch! Thanks chaps, we were very impressed!

Each panel was crated for transportation. They were so heavy we had to rig up a roller system to move them around.

First unveiling. Everything intact!
Then assembly and manoevring into position. Easy!

Saint Gobain Glass UK - wall panels installed

2010-10-04T22:45:00.004+01:00

The 3 wall panels commissioned by Saint Gobain Glass UK are now installed in the meeting room at the Eggborough Plant.

Eleanor Bird (who I collaborated with on the project) and I are pleased with the results, and folk at Saint Gobain seem happy too - which is the main thing! The commission took a while to come to fruition, but it was very satisfying to finally see the panels in place.

you win some, you lose some - PhD research scholarship

2010-06-03T21:01:00.006+01:00

Lots of good things have been happening recently, but I thought it was only fair to blog about the disappointments as well as the highs.

My most recent disappointment was my application for a PhD scholarship within the University of Sunderland's Glass and Ceramics Department. Although on the positive side (always the optimist) apparently I was a really really close second.

The working title for my proposal was Transmission, reflection and emission of light through flat glass - the artistic application of coatings on glass and the manipulation of the glass surface to alter translucency and reflectivity. The aim of the research was to find new artistic possibilities within architectural glass resulting from new and emerging technologies in the field of coatings on glass. I was hoping to be able to do a survey of new and recent developments within the architectural flat glass industry, explore the possibilities for artistic application of these and produce a body of artwork.

Saint Gobain Glass UK, with whom I have been developing a relationship over the last nine months or so had agreed to support my research in principle, pending further discussions about the nature of the research and what exactly I would need. The main feedback from my interview was that the panel were concerned about the links with industry that would be required to make my research a success, and were worried that it would collapse if my industry links fell through. I did get some very positive encouragement however, in particular regarding the links I have made with industry so far and the quality of my proposal.

So all in all, although it's disappointing to be turned down, and frustrating to spend a lot of time and energy on something that doesn't come to fruition, I think I proved my competence and solidified my reputation in the department. And there's always next year. So now I have a year to solidify my links with Saint Gobain Glass UK, make new connections and maybe submit a stronger proposal next year. Watch this space....

North Yorkshire Open Studios 2010

2010-06-03T15:16:00.005+01:00

Over two weekends in June I will be opening my studio to visitors as part of North Yorkshire Open Studios.

Stable Studio, 14 Royal Crescent Lane, Scarborough, North Yorkshire, YO11 2RL.

weekend 1: Fri - Sun 11th, 12th & 13th June

weekend 2: Sat - Sun 19th & 20th June

times: 10.30am - 5.30pm

come along for a chat and to see work in progress, examples of architectural and public art projects, works on paper plus glass samples and test pieces. Selected works will be for sale.

North Yorkshire Open Studios is a great chance to see a whole host of artists. 123 artists are taking part in the main programme, with extra exhibitions, talks and workshops also taking place. See their website for full details.

York Hospital Lifts - panel 1 installed

2010-05-21T17:31:00.006+01:00

It's always good to see a project installed. This first phase needs final approval in relation to use of the lift by people with visual impairments - the fact that we were using reflective glass and mirror was making some people nervous in this respect. We're confident it will pass the test and are looking forward to making another 4 panels.

The panel is made up of a rear layer of mirror which is almost entirely obscured by sandblasted glass. The mirror adds light and luminosity to the panel. The front glass layer is sandblasted and painted on the back and is also sandblasted on the front giving depth and a multi-layered effect.

Each panel will be based round a species of tree, and this first one is cherry. The text isn't necessarily meant to be read but gives interesting facts about the cherry tree - it's origins, how it is propogated etc. The text weaves between the sandblasted layers and so is sharp in some areas and partially obscured in others.

The artwork went down well with folk at the hospital. Adrian and I are pleased with it too. The estates manager, who admitted he was originally opposed any art in the lifts declared it 'not bad at all' which apparently is praise indeed!

Glass panel arrives!

2010-05-21T16:47:00.004+01:00

The project making glass panels for inside 5 lifts in York Hospital is moving along now. Panel 1 is a bit of a test panel, and providing it is approved we will then be making another four. This is also a collaboration with Adrian Riley of Electric Angel Design.

A delivery is always an exciting time. Here our sandblasted and painted glass panel arrives from Creative Glass ready for installation. Adrian inspects!

The guys from Rubax Lifts start the installation. Those sucker things are great for lifting glass, although the sandblasted areas make them lose suction so they have to be quick - I was scared!

Twenty two and three quarter miles to Whitby

2010-05-21T15:52:00.004+01:00

a couple more pictures of Everyone's Always Somewhere...

Everyone's Always Somewhere

2010-05-21T14:57:00.009+01:00

'Everyone's Always Somewhere' is now the official title of our now completed Old Railway Line project. It's the first line of the poem written by poet John Clarke in response to discussions with users of the old railway line. The phrase is actually a direct quote from one of the first young people we chatted to. I'm pleased it has now become the title.

The picture with the blue strip shows the glass strips which are silvered on 3 sides and inserted between the flags to add detail, depth and luminosity to the design. And I quite like the one showing the workmen reading the poem and coming over all contemplative!

Here are a few photos of the complete project. I'll add some wider shots ones we've scrubbed the tarmac and the surrounding green areas have been tidied!

Railway project installation starts!

2010-03-09T18:13:00.005Z

Yesterday was the first time I actually saw the etched paving, and I must say it looks great! I really like how the etched area shows the curvy bmps of the glass chips which is a nice contrast to the smoothness of the rest of the surface. They glint beautifully in the sunlight too. There have been lots of delays and hitches with this project - sometimes useful (giving a little extra time to do some silvering), sometimes frustrating (waiting for pay day). It is the groundwork preparation that has been slow, which was completely beyond our control. I think the extended snowy winter has had something to do with it. Luckily the health and safety specification problems turned out fine. As the glass strips ae so small no information about load bearing capacity was needed afterall. Saint Gobain Glass, who supplied the glass were extremely helpful though, and can work out load bearing specifications from a drawing. Very impressive.

Anyway, now it is finally happening. We've been assembling the recycled glass slabs (supplied by Enviroglass) like a giant jigsaw, which was both fun and good for the biceps! we're on call all this week for jigsawing the next batch. Of course little hitches are still occuring. Today we found that the top section of the 'U' didn't line up with the bottom section slightly, and there was a bit of a tense moment while we decided if it was far enough out to be worth replacing. I'm a bit of a perfectionist and was in the yes camp, but a broken slab meant we were ordering another one anyway so that was the clincher. We're re-etching the misaligned U.

see the project blog for more pics

Railway project silvering

2010-03-09T17:30:00.015Z

The railway public art project is being installed! see the project's own blog for a full pictorial archive.

Silvering the glass strips that are to be inserted between etched paving slabs proved a little tricky. In the end, it was the rather low temperature of my studio (10 degrees C) that was the problem. A cosy 21 degrees was needed to make the chemical reactions work. A god excuse to whack up the heating! Angel Gilding supplied the silvering kit - it came all the way from the USA!

I could seriously get into this silvering idea. Attempting to silver very thin strips with not much in the way of time or materials to spare was rather stressful but it worked out ok. Square foot coverage of several thin strips is not the same as if they were all one sheet though, so I got through a lot of chemicals! It was fun though, and now they're being cemented in place as I type. The long thin strips are silvered on 2 sides then embedded in the ground with only 1 clear edge visible. The intention is that the light enters and bounces around giving little strips of luminosity and depth in amongst recycled glass paving etched with signage text and a poem.

another award for Scarborough - we're on a roll!

2009-11-23T23:56:00.003Z

RT Adrian Riley: stop press: scarborough wins acadamy of urbanism 'great town award'. is there no stopping us?! we beat finalists cambridge and chester. Hurrah!

New sponsors - Saint Gobain Glass UK

2009-11-23T22:09:00.005Z

It's official! Saint Gobain Glass UK (SGGUK) are sponsoring new work plus business start-up and development.
This is an amazing new development for me at such an early stage in my architectural glass career, and I feel immensely privileged. In fact it has carried me through a very tricky first few months after graduating when even though a few commissions are on the go, the cash isn't flowing yet! So business start up funding from SGGUK has really helped get my business going. I'm also working on 2 commissions for them, both at the main Eggborough manufacturing plant. The first is for their main meeting room, and is a collaboration with fellow University of Sunderland graduate Eleanor Bird who is also receiving sponsorship. The second commission will be sited in the floor to ceiling windows of the main reception area, and is to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the opening of the factory. During our negotiations we had an amazing tour round the manufacturing plant which is vast (see pictures). We saw the whole float glass manufacturing process. SGGUK pride themselves on an amazing set of 'green credentials'. They are the only company to collect cullet (glass for recycling) from their clients and pay for it. They then recycle this into the manufacturing process. Only 0.002% of their production is waste. They also seem to be a very people-centred organisation. Their MD Dr Alan McLenaghan stresses that a great deal of their success is down to respecting their people and getting the culture right. So, they seem a very good comany to be associated with! Ive already had some very inspiring conversations with Alan who is obviously very passionate about glass. I'm looking forward to more, and to finding out about the new technologies they are developing.

Tomorrow I have a site visit and hope to get the final proposals for the first commission approved. More about the artworks I'm making for them in future posts...

old railway line delays

2009-11-14T23:26:00.000Z

The installation of our Old Railway Line public art project has now been put back for a second time - until January! While things were pretty tight schedule-wise, and the first short delay was quite welcome, this does seem a long time to wait.

I'm now on with further research into health and safety issues to do with laying the glass strips into the ground. Our work has to be able to withstand vehicles driving over it, and the contractors need to have proof that the stuff we're asking them to install complies with health and safety regulations and is fit for purpose. With the etched paving slabs the supplier provides that information. With strips of glass that I've water-jet cut and am soon to be silvering it doesn't seem so straightforward. Hmmm... think I need to give my old tutor a ring - architectural glass artist Cate Watkinson of Watkinson Glass Associates.

Anyway, I had fun water-jet cutting the glass at the University of Sunderland's Glass dept. (see picture)

Old Railway Line public art project

2009-10-08T13:57:00.000+01:00

So - what am I up to? You can see some past projects on my website, so I'll document what I'm working on now.

A public art project on the Scarborough - Whitby Old Railway Line is my most recent project. Commissioned by Scarborough Borough Council and the Friends of the Old Railway Line this is a joint project with Adrian Riley of Electric Angel Design. The finished artwork will be ground based and will act as both signage and waymarker. Visually the artwork is inpsired by period railway typography with giant lettering and subtle glass inserts within paving made from recycled glass. Poetry by John Wedgewood Clarke is being etched into the surface. We went to the site with John and talked to users of the track in order to generate words and phrases that formed the raw material from which John has written the poem. Progress can be seen on the projects own blog http://www.railwayart.com/ This images shows the scale mock-up in progress.

The project has been a complicated one particularly regarding costings and sourcing materials and services and has taken many hours of sorting! It's been a steep learning curve but fun nevertheless. It's also been great working with Electric Angel. It has made me realise I much prefer working with other people. Partnership working here I come!

Background

2009-10-03T17:20:00.000+01:00

I started out as a painter and printmaker, gradually gravitating towards glass through a lifetime fascination with all things transparent, translucent and reflective. After some time earning a living through curating, arts management and gallery based education I took the plunge and did a Masters Degree in Glass at the University of Sunderland (and got a distinction - hurrah!). This intense period of study expanded my repertoire of techniques and skills base as well as developing my work from an intellectual and critical perspective. It was an amazing experience and I squeezed every little bit out of it that I could. I became really good at juggling plates (or I had plenty of practice at any rate) - combining paid work, looking after a 5 year old and part-time but all consuming study was bloody hard work and nearly killed me! It was a really good decision to go back into education though, as already it has fast-tracked my art creating career immensely and things look poised for action!

Art, Life and Architectural Glass

2009-10-03T17:01:00.000+01:00

Art, Life and Architectural Glass is a documentation of my work as an artist specialising in architectural glass. It aims to show an up to date record of what I'm up to - projects I'm working on, things I'm thinking about, what I'm actually creating and how those things came about as well as interesting stuff I see, find, read, listen to or experience. It is intended to give some sort of background view of myself as an artist, showing the person and processes behind the artwork.