LearnSweden Blog

Visby Glassworks

 

Sweden has a long standing tradition of glassblowing. Personally, I love glass and I don't think there is such a thing as too much glass. Lucky for us not only did we find glass but the furnace was hot and working. We just had to stay and watch. It was totally mesmerizing. The furnace is 1200 degrees C.

The pole sits in the oven getting hot and ready to put a blob of sand on it. Excuse me because this isn't a technical term. It is my own homegrown interpretation of things.

The pole is constantly in motion as the glass maker turns and bends the molten sand.

What was this fine artist making? Why this of course. Isn't it beautiful?

Also from the oven

Are these beautiful works of art. I ended up buying a little carafe for salad dressing.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Fat Matter Press

                                       

So often we recount a familiar story only to know it again when we see it through the eyes and talents of someone who has been inspired by it. The moment I saw the photo of the "Crane Dances" I wanted to know more about them. When I discovered who was the source of the inspiration I knew I had to share it with you.

Fat Matter Press is the passionate pursuit of a father and son and their love of using a Chandler & Price letterpress. Steeped in the tradition of letter pressing they produce lovely cards and art books while upholding a very old printing tradition.

Old letter-presses weren't the only things that caught their eye. While Todd was reading Selma Lagerlof's "The Wonderful Adventures of Nils" to his daughter ,this passage danced from the pages of the story and onto their beautiful printing press.

“They were majestic. These gray, dusk-clad birds . . . came gliding down the knoll with a mysterious abandon. They swung around – half flying, half dancing. With wings gracefully lifted, they moved with an inconceivable speed. There was something marvelous and strange about their dance . . . as though gray shadows played a game too complex for eyes to follow. . . . There was a wildness in it; yet the feeling which it awakened was a wonderful longing.”

To discover Fat Matter Press for yourself please have a look here.

For your enjoyment, the following photos were provided by Todd and are the property of Fat Matter Press.