Reflected Tradition 004

Reflected Tradition 004 is a unique handblown glass vessel with fine filigree cane detail created by the British artist Liam Reeves. Handblown in bronze coloured glass, the interior has a mirrored finish, which results in a beautiful metallic effect.

Liam Reeves has been making glass professionally since 1998 when he graduated from Middlesex University with a BA (Hons) in three-dimensional design. During this time he has honed his skills whilst working in the glass industry for some of the best glassmakers in the UK. In 2009 Reeves studied for an MA at the RCA in order to explore the creative possibilities of the medium of glassblowing. He is currently hot-glass technician at the very same and prestigious Royal College of Art in London.

While at the RCA Liam discovered a passion for investigating pivotal techniques from glassblowing’s two-millennia of rich history. From the mould blowing of ancient Rome to the complex goblet-making techniques of Renaissance Venice and on to the finesse of factory manufactured glass after the Industrial revolution.

He has demonstrated these techniques widely for public events, Universities and museums including the Victoria & Albert Museum in London.

In his own words:

'As technology advances, the ways that we perceive, understand, and influence the world around us are changing. As more aspects of human experience permeate through a filter of electronic manipulation, actual experience becomes entwined with the virtual. Through the use of digital tools, it becomes possible to understand form in terms of mathematical co-ordinates, existing only in a theoretical space. In parallel, the concept of craftsmanship itself is also transforming; skill in using digital media is being equated with skill in manipulating molten glass or other materials.'

Reeves has always been interested in the evolution of technology and the impact and effect that this has on human experience. For this body of work, Reeves has adopted the methodology of digital design applications in order to impose and apply a set of instructions for the analogue process of making blown glass. To utilize the language associated with digital design and making, Reeves uses layers, filters and tools in order to fabricate objects that are planned and constructed in a manner that is analogous with current and future modes of design and production. The intention is to ultimately use the ancient process of glassblowing to create works that are specifically borne of a new mode of thinking that can only come from the here and now of the 21st century.