Edmond Byrne

1. What motivates you to make?

Often people talk about making as a way of satisfying the human need to work with the hands and be creative. For me, it is all of this and more because it also satisfies that human desire for the mind, body and imagination to be integrated in the activity of thinking through making. This is the unison of embodied knowledge, know how and creative freedom. In a time where cognitive intelligence is at the fore in an increasingly virtual experience of the world, mastering a material through making exquisite objects that imbue emotion and carry concepts, engages deeply with the whole spectrum of the mind. This practice results in objects that stake out their presence in the world, artefacts of curiosity, thoughts and labour and perhaps evidence of my consciousness.

2. What and/or who are you most inspired or influenced by?

I work primarily in mould blown glass. A Roman invention, reinvented by the industrial revolution, and rediscovered as a creative process by Tapie Wirkala, Iittala Glassworks and Geoffrey Baxter, Whitefriars Glassworks in the 1960s. The main driver for my work is my curiosity for the material, which I experiment with to learn more about. Questions are raised through craft practice. I'm interested in our perceptions of colour and its relationship with emotion. Rothko is a big influence for me, particularly his composition of colour. My approach to building moulds can be compared to Eduardo Paolozzi’s approach to sculptural assembly, working with a library of forms and textures to construct an overall composition. Automatic Drawing is also a part of my creative practice; I’m curious about how drawings can translate into moulds and then glass.

3. What is your unique approach to your craft, and how have you honed your skills?

My approach to craft is experimental. I seek to discover a library of visual language to develop into coherent exquisite objects. For the Ensemble Collection, I worked with predetermined elements, beautiful fragments with their own history, dominated by their stark disposable utility. These fragments were found off-cuts picked up off the floor, discarded from the blown glass objects that I make. I found myself with the task of bringing these pieces together to create complete and exquisite objects. This was led by the use of low energy yet time consuming hand making processes; grinding, polishing and carving to perfection. A consistent thread in my practice is assembly, stacking and play, working with a library of textures and forms. This creativity set the stage for building exquisite objects to form this collection.

4. What is your defining or proudest moment as a maker so far?

My work is in the collections of the V&A Museum, Ulster Museum and the National Collection of Ireland. I won the RDS Craft Award 2018, and was shortlisted for the Jerwood Makers Open and the Penland Fellowship. I was also the 2011 winner of the Dan Klein Memorial Bursary from the Contemporary Glass Society.

5. What is your dream project?

A monumental work about colour in glass approximately 5m x 5m made of tubular glass components hanging in a square grid pattern. Hanging from the ceiling, stretching all the way down, just hovering over the floor. They will be made of clear glass. One single red rod in the centre positioned towards the back. A light from the back of the cube will illuminate the red, allowing the colour to bleed through the rest of the rods.