Edle Gläser und wie sie hergestellt werden
The Schimmer glass studio is located in Waging am See, a picturesque village in Upper Bavaria. Here, Michael Murner produces fine glass, art objects and glass insects by hand. We visited him and watched him at work.
When you enter the studio, you find yourself in a large, bright room with minimalist furnishings and clean lines. A few shelves are mounted on the walls and tables are scattered around the room. Visitors are invited to concentrate on the essentials, the glass. You move from shelf to shelf, from table to table, looking at the glasses and vases at your leisure. Finally, you discover the fragile-looking glass radiolariums and ask yourself how they are made. There are fountain pens on a table ready to write a few words. They too were made entirely from glass by Michael Murner. On one of the shelves, dainty insects can be admired that are so beautifully made from amazingly fine glass that you don't dare touch them for fear they would break immediately.
And during our little tour, Michael Murner sits at his workstation and creates one of his glasses. He invites us to watch how a beautifully shaped brandy glass is created from an unspectacular glass blank. Michael Murner discovered his passion for glass over 20 years ago and took up the profession of glass apparatus maker. He learned the craft, which mainly involves making technical glass objects for industry, from scratch and received his master craftsman's certificate in 2001. In all the years he has worked in this field, however, there has been one limitation. Although the work for industry is technically demanding, it is not particularly artistic or creative. He wanted to change that.
He has been running the Schimmer glass studio in Waging am See since 2007 and concentrates on the production of high-quality drinking glasses, art objects and insects. The glasses are characterized by a straightforward simplicity, in contrast to which the beautiful, delicate insects are as lifelike as possible and the radiolarians are fascinatingly organic. At this point, we would like to show the interesting production of the aforementioned brandy glass. It all starts with a glass blank. The stem of the final glass is first made from this and decorated with a thin, white glass thread. Incidentally, various metal oxides are used to color glass and even pure gold is used for ruby red glass, making it one of the most expensive glass colors.
When working with glass, it is important to pay attention to the temperature of the flame. Since there is no display to regulate the temperature, the master must orient himself by the color of the flame and the sound of the burner. Only years of experience can help here. The glass is heated accordingly and brought into the desired shape with skillful turning and pulling movements. A great deal of practice and skill is required to achieve the right glass thickness and shape. Anyone who has ever seen a glassblower working with a gas burner will have noticed the violet lenses he often wears. These are special lenses made of didymium. They filter out the sodium radiation that is produced when glass is heated. Without these glasses, it is much harder to see the glass being worked on in the flame of the burner and it can also cause damage to the eyes. Another interesting point is the risk of sunburn for the glassblower, which can be caused by the UV radiation from the flame.
The next step is the production of the goblet. Here too, a glass blank is brought into the right shape with great calm and precision using the appropriate pulling and turning movements. In addition, the glass is blown from the mouth to form the glass bubble. The stem is then joined to the glass bubble and the base is formed. Then the upper part of the glass bubble is sawn off, "opened" so to speak, and the rim is ground off.
Our glass is now finished. Each glass is truly unique. Because they are made entirely by hand, there are minimal differences in shape and size. Of course, this can only be recognized in a direct comparison of two glasses and then only on very close inspection. However, this is precisely what creates the special charm of a handmade glass. It is unique.
We would like to say a big thank you to Michael Murner. For his time and the opportunity to watch him at work. Thank you very much.
If you are interested, the glasses and art objects can be purchased in his online store at: www.michaelmurner.de
