More art than craft, Glød Glas Studio presents a beautiful display of unique glassworks.
The spark of creation Entering Glød Glas Studio just outside Nexø is like walking into a candy store for the eyes. Underneath the wooden beams in glass cases soaked in natural light, are striking displays of the owners’ unique glasswork. More art than craft, the vases and bowls combine colours, translucent patterns and soft shapes into unique little demonstrations of human creativity and century-old handcraft. By Signe Hansen
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Photos: Kristoffer Linus
Directly translated, the name Glød means ‘ember’, but it also carries within it the meaning of a spark that keeps something alive; that spark is what has nourished Danish Tobias Sode and Norwegian Lene Dahl Jacobsen’s passion for glass for decades. Last spring, it ignited fully as the couple opened their own glass studio. “Since opening, we have had a lot of people who seem quite blown away when they enter our studio; they are surprised by what they see. That’s a good feeling 24
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Issue 160
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November 2023
when people see the beauty in what you do,” says Sode. ”There is a lot of glass on Bornholm, and many people walk in here expecting a display of glasses and water carafes, and we don’t have that at all – we do vases and bowls. But what really captures people’s attention is the technique.” The technique which creates the striking colours on display is known as the Venetian technique and has been practised for centuries on the small island of Murano in Italy. It is, however, a highly challeng-
ing technique, which it has taken the two glassblowers years to refine. A journey of learning Having met at the Swedish glass-blowing school in Kosta (now closed) in 2001, Sode and Jacobsen quickly realised that they were both keen to do more with their craft than work in a regular glass factory. Thus, after graduating, they set out to explore new schools and techniques around the world. Along the way, they got more experience with the Venetian technique. “We worked with glass blowers that worked with the Venetian technique, and took a number of courses in the US and Venice,” explains Sode. “I have always been fascinated by that way of working with glass; it is extremely advanced, and I longed to master it. But it takes a lot of practice, and practice is hard to get when it costs 2500 kroner a