George F. Jackson
The Stourbridge Glassmakers The Ruskin Glass Centre
The Stourbridge Glassmakers The Ruskin Glass Centre George F. Jackson
All photographs and interviews by Sarah McDowall
George F. Jackson Pâte de verre artist
“My name is George Jackson and I’ve been at the Ruskin centre for about eight years.” “My work revolves around ceramics and glass. In terms of glass I am known for a technique called pâte de verre. This is a type of casting where you use crushed glass and you place it inside a mould and you put in the colour where you want it.” “My background is within general art and design, painting and ceramics. Ceramics was close to my heart, so even the casts that I do tend start off as ceramic pieces in the first place and moulds are taken from that.”
“I sell a fair number of small pieces and a few large pieces, I don’t go out of my way, marketing a lot of my work because I don’t produce that amount and I don’t want that kind of pressure where you are demanded of you. What I look to do is to make what I am interested in and I hope other people will want to buy it.”
“In a normal casting situation the glass would be flowing and moving but with pâte de verre, it enables you to place the colour in granular form in particular spaces. I tend to be known for doing that but I work with recycled glass as opposed to very expensive glass.”
“I hope the best is still come, the moment I finish a piece it becomes a little bit of history to me. Some pieces hold affection and they are usually ones that ones that break into new territory.�
“I don’t have one thing on the go I tend to have a number of pieces and they can be very varied from what I call serious art pieces to quite fun and enjoyable things from a very trivial point of view. At the moment I’m working on a large water feature, it’s composed of both fused glass and ceramic terracotta background.”
Stourbridge is a town, located in the West Midlands and is known to be the glass quarter of England. Glassmaking in Stourbridge can be dated as far back as 1612, the glass is still classed as some of the world’s finest and has been used many times as gifts for royalty. The Ruskin Glass Centre is a distinct space that encompasses an array of glassmakers who are all very successful. They all have their own techniques and although it might not look like the materials they use are glass, they all have one thing in common they all are glassmakers The Stourbridge Glassmakers. Thank you to George Jackson for his time and patience. www.ruskinglasscentre.co.uk
www.sarahmcdowall.com