EMANATE

EMANATE - (verb) to flow out, issue, or proceed, as from a source or origin; come forth; originate.

 

I take inspiration from nature and the environment, in this instance, which sparked the beginning of this idea was an interaction I had with a small tortoiseshell butterfly. It had found its way into my house to transform into its chrysalis and emerge into its final form as a butterfly.

From looking at some extreme macro photographs of butterfly wings, it revealed the striking colourful scale structures that form the wing patterns.

I chose to explore cane and murrine techniques in hot glass, which consists of layering colour(s) to create patterns or ‘images’ in glass which is then stretched into a rod. These are then cut into cross-sections, revealing the simple or complex patterns known as murrini.

The use of these techniques allows me to communicate and bring a visible sense of the tiny scales that structure the wing and its patterns, which cannot be seen by the human eye.

The final form of each individual blown glass art piece signifies the chrysalis, which is where the colours of the wings can emanate and be revealed when the butterfly is very close to emerging.