Norwegian Contemporary Glass Art - Variety and Renewal
For more than 4000 years man has been fascinated by glass. In the furnace, the simple, natural raw materials sand and chalk are transformed into a glowing, malleable mass. Glass is so versatile and its technical possibilities so great that only the glassworker's imagination limits how it can be used and shaped.
Norway has been producing glass since 1741. The oldest glassworks in Norway still in existence, Hadeland Glassverk (founded in 1762) has played a dominant role in Norwegian glass manufacture throughout the 20th century. The period since 1950, when a number of prominent designers joined the company and art glass production started, has been particularly interesting. The goal was to combine good design with practicality. The late 1970s saw a further development in Norwegian glass, as young artists established their own independent studio workshops. They have contributed to a new approach in Norwegian glass art, and some of the have achieved international recognition.