Artist of the Month
November 2024
Peter Layton
At 87, Peter Layton is one of the world’s oldest practicing glass artists. From discovering glassblowing while teaching ceramics in America to establishing London Glassblowing, his journey spans decades of innovation. Founder of the Contemporary Glass Society, Layton continues to advance his practice and glass art's recognition. He is represented by London Glassblowing, London, UK.
Click each photo for a full picture.
Emerald Leaf Group, 2023; (l to r) 19 x 10.5 x 5.5 centimeters, 33 x 19 x 6 centimeters, 17 x 11.5 x 6.5 centimeters; freeblown glass, etched; Photo by Alick Cotterill
Aurora - Green, 2024; 38 x 23 x 7 centimeters; freeblown glass; Photo by Alick Cotterill
Light Blue Shard, 2024; 34 x 26 x 13 centimeters; cast glass, cut and polished; Photo by Alick Cotterill
Pink Wide Cloud & Emerald Tall Cloud I, 2024; (l to r) 27 x 37 x 13 centimeters, 44 x 25 x 15 centimeters; freeblown glass, cut and polished; Photo by Alick Cotterill
Wave I & Standing Wave, 2024; (l to r) 25 x 32 x 22 centimeters, 32 x 23 x 26 centimeters; hot-sculpted glass; Photo by Sylvain Deleu
Green Paradiso, 2023; (l to r) 24.5 x 17 x 8 centimeters, 17 x 11 x 7 centimeters, 23 x 13 x 8 centimeters; freeblown glass; Photo by Alick Cotterill
Aurora - Blue Pair, 2024; each approximately 38 x 23 x 7 centimeters; freeblown glass; Photo by Alick Cotterill
Wave on Base, 2024; 25 x 54 x 22 centimeters; hot-sculpted glass; Photo by Alick Cotterill
Peter Layton
Artist Statement:
My approach to my work is exploratory, and my pieces seek to express the magic of glass, its sensuality and fluidity. As an inveterate beachcomber, much of my early work was inspired by shells and pebbles, lichen patterns, found objects, and places visited, and as a former potter I was as concerned with texture and the tactile qualities of glass as I was with form, color and transparency.
Over the past few years I have taken inspiration from painters whose work I love, moving to a more sculptural and painterly approach to vessel making, in which the flattened form becomes a canvas for gesture and bold color. More recently I have taken the bold move to attempt to express the frozen moment achieved in Hokkusai’s Great Wave. Not easy in glass! My work does not seek to replicate, simply to evoke the essence and painterly qualities in the medium of glass.
I enjoy the challenge of working on a theme and find it provides great stimulus and inspiration. It can sometimes require the development of labor-intensive and time-consuming color preparation techniques to create the complex patterns and visual detail that I want to achieve.
About Peter Layton
Peter was born in 1937 in Prague, but two years later his parents were forced to flee to Britain. They eventually settled in Bradford, in the North of England, to be near his grandfather, a pathologist and colleague of Sigmund Freud, who nurtured Peter’s passion for art through concerts and exhibitions.
A foundation degree from Bradford Art College, followed by a diploma at London’s Central School of Art and Design, led him to specialize in ceramics. Then, a teaching post at the University of Iowa in 1965 changed everything. The American studio glass movement was born in the 60s, and Peter was mesmerised, immediately enrolling in the University’s glassblowing program and learning what he could from the movement’s forerunners such as Marvin Lipofsky and Sam Herman.
On his return to the UK in 1968, Peter opened a small glass studio in the Highlands of Scotland while relying on pottery for a living. In 1976 he opened the London Glassblowing Workshop in an old towage works on the Thames at Rotherhithe. Throughout the 1980s, Layton, then chair of British Artists in Glass, represented the UK at major international events. His two-metre Pyramid at Czechoslovakia's Glass Olympics was a celebrated triumph. He has exhibited globally, authored publications and completed large-scale commissions. His work is held in various museums in the UK, Europe, and America, including the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, and the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, UK.
Acknowledgment of Gallery:
We are grateful to London Glassblowing, London, UK, for providing the Artist of the Month.
The Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to further the development and appreciation of art made from glass.
The Alliance informs collectors, critics and curators by encouraging and supporting museum exhibitions, university glass departments and specialized teaching programs, regional collector groups, visits to private collections, and public seminars.
