How a Box of Bullseye Glass Changed Everything

One of the things I’ve enjoyed growing into since founding Berlin Glassworks has been learning the art of glass fusing. My first encounter with the medium was through Ruth Oliphant, our inaugural Endeavour Award Artist-in-Residence in 2014. Supported by Bullseye Glass, Ruth somewhat overestimated her material needs, and when she left, we found ourselves with quite a surplus of glass.

Many people know what happened next. War in the Middle East brought around 15,000 displaced people to Berlin the following year. In response, we began experimenting with a new format: the Fusing Café at the studio, to which no one showed up! 😅 So with a broken suitcase filled with glass and lots of Elmer’s Glue, we travelled to shelters and community centres across the city instead. Those early workshops planted the roots of what would eventually become the Kiez Mobil in 2017.

These three photos show a commission I’ve been producing for the studio. The piece measures one metre by fifty centimetres and consists of six layers of Bullseye Glass. Unfortunately, it was about five centimetres too large for our kiln, so I borrowed one from a friend's studio in Kreuzberg.

There’s something beautiful about that spirit of generosity and sharing within the glass community, but sometimes it also comes with drawbacks: I wasn’t able to monitor the piece at top temperature, so I’m hoping the glass didn’t bubble and that it fused as smoothly as the prototype.

Fingers crossed—it comes out of the kiln tomorrow. 🤞✨