Aleksandra & Martin Ehrensvärd

AB Stockholms Glasbruk

Glassblower

©Martin Ehrensvärd

©Sandra Urvak

©Oskar Ehrensvärd

©Aleksandra Pavlenkova

©Sandra Urvak

Where glass lines and life lines meet

Aleksandra and Martin are the fourth generation of owners of their current studio
They worked in several countries before settling together in Sweden
They enjoy experimenting and mixing glass with metal

Aleksandra and Martin Ehrensvärd run the glassblowing workshop Stockholms Glasbruk together since 2020. Aleksandra, a glass artist from Estonia, graduated from Estonian Academy of Arts and worked for several years in Olustvere Glassblowing Studio, the biggest glass blowing workshop in Estonia. Martin learned how to blow glass as a high school student at Palo Alto High School in California. After graduating he travelled the world and worked with many great glass masters. He later returned to Palo Alto and worked as an artist and teacher at the high school where he had trained. The duo met during internships in Denmark. They collaborated for several years in various workshops across Sweden, Estonia and the USA. In the summer of 2020, Aleksandra and Martin took over the glassblowing studio in Skansen, the world's oldest open-air museum in the centre of Stockholm.

Interview

©Sandra Urvak

©Aleksandra Pavlenkova

What excites you about glassblowing?: Martin: The glass process is mysterious and close to alchemy – turning something as simple as sand into precious glass sculptures is fascinating. Every day new methods and materials are discovered, which means that many new ways of working with glass are always waiting to be developed.
How do you work together?: Aleksandra: We are very different, but our different aesthetics and approach spark conversation, and through the dialogue comes growth and new ideas. Elements of one's work transition into the other's creations and vice versa. That is often our creative process.
What is your advice for young glassblowers?: Aleksandra: In the beginning it is best to learn as an apprentice to a glassblowing master. I recommend to then broaden your perspective by travelling and working with different masters in the field as well as in different studios to gain new skills and techniques.
What are your favourite techniques?: Martin: We experiment a lot! I like to use a cane working technique, which I learned during an internship in Italy. This technique helps to create intriguing patterns in the glass.

Aleksandra & Martin Ehrensvärd are expert artisans: they began their career in 2010