After studying glassworking in one of the Czech trade schools which train students to work in one of the country’s many art glass factories, Martin Rosol spent all his days for years producing other artists’ functional glass works. By night, though, using the scraps left over from his day job, he started producing his own abstract designs. Although the rigid, formulaic factory work wasn’t for him, he was unable to strike out on his own. In communist Czechoslovakia, he wasn’t permitted to sell his work. Nonetheless, by 1981, he was winning prizes. In 1986, he moved to Austria, and in 1988, once his long-awaited work visa came through, he relocated to Massachusetts, and settled in to pursue his love of glass.

His perseverance definitely paid off. Rosol’s works are now included in major museums around the world, and for good reason. Their use of architecture and light, and their overall sense of balance show him to be a master at his craft.

And if you happen to find yourself in Corning, New York (a lovely place to be, by the way), he’s giving a cold working class suitable for beginners in January 2016!