RED HOUSE PAGODA

glass object by GALA FERNANDEZ, Mexico City, 2014

MATERIAL: Handblown red glass and birdcage, salvaged bird cage
SIZE: L 40 x H 45 x W 20 cm, D (front): 12 cm // L 15.74 x H 17.71 x W 7.87 in; D (front): 4.72 in

CRAFTSMANSHIP / PRODUCTION: by the skilled craftsmen with the glass knowhow of acclaimed glass company Nouvel Studio, Mexico City

This large red glass object originates from a glass-blowing project, by Gala Fernandez, realised with the skilled glass-blowers of acclaimed glass manufacturer NOUVEL Studio in México City. The liquid glass is blown into various shaped and sized birdcages serving as the moulds for this process. Once the housings for colourful birds, the cages have transcended into objects, containers, vases or vessels, new life has literally been blown into them. The objects are a result of the interaction of the hot fluid glass with the moulds. The colour and crystal quality of the glass is remarkable and highly rated, as are the skills of the glass-blowers. The project questions the status of confinement versus refuge. A cage can be conceived as imprisonment or a cosy shelter for comfort. The glass works subtly capture this essence of limitation, protection and custody in an imaginative fashion.

Distinctive glass company Nouvel Studio is famous for its high quality coloured and crystal-like glass. The firm - under the direction of creative visionary Michael Kramer - has done unprecedented work in collaborating with the most prolific established and emerging mexican architects, designers and artists. The is very high artisanal and craft skill required to blow those pieces, which can only be achieved through decades of passed-on knowledge.