Antoine Pierini

Glass sculptor

©Yann Savalle

©CVC

©Ilan Dehe

©Benoit Page

Connections through molten glass

Pierini comes from a family of glass artisans
His art is often inspired by the Mediterranean
He is a vital part of the Biot glass arts movement

Antoine Pierini was born in 1980, the same year his parents established their glass arts centre in the city of Biot, France. He grew up in a world of glassblowing and art, with a playground beside his father’s studio, and he tells how he learned by watching and has always been fascinated by it. In 1995, the family traveled to Seattle, WA, working to create a connection between US-based artists and the community in Biot. “This was when it really struck me, when I recognized the power of the sculptural aspect of blown glass,” Antoine explains. This was his inciting moment, and he’s worked ever since, innovating and exploring many themes but with a close focus on the Mediterranean world and its context.

Interview

©Barbara Kaucher

©Barbara Kaucher

What do you love about glass working?: There’s so much I love about it – the physics of the heat, the teamwork aspect. But the moment I really love is when a project becomes real for the first time. Suddenly we have a series, an entire universe, with its history and research behind it.
Can you tell us about your research?: My goal is to create an exchange in a positive way, I like connecting with antiquity, with the Greeks or Romans, an interaction we can then move into a contemporary context. My process involves using ancient symbols to tell stories about the world today.
What is so special about glass?: An entire life isn’t enough time to explore all the artistic possibilities of molten glass. There’s just so many things you can do with it. It’s completely unique, the way it plays with light, how it can be reworked again cold. It’s an incredible material.
What inspires you?: I’m guided by ideas, not by the image of an object springing to mind. What comes to me is a thematic discourse, and then I need to work out how I’ll represent it. So I research: philosophy, history, contemporary art, normal people, and nature. It's all inspiring.

Antoine Pierini is a master artisan: he began his career in 2000 and he started teaching in 2014