Reflections across dimensions
- Karen uses many techniques including neon and cast glass to make her works
- She studied architecture and holds a master’s in site-specific sculpture
- Her work explores how light transforms texture, colour and depth
Through her conceptual glass art, Karen Browning bridges the worlds of childhood memories and architectural thought. Karen lives in Dorset, where she grew up shooting tin cans, and this connection to the rural is expressed in the immediacy and defiance of her works. , and the refined realm of architectural thought and conceptual glass art. Trained in architecture and site-specific sculpture, she spent several years as assistant to glass artist Colin Reid. "This built up my technical mastery," explains Karen. Her cast glass and neon works range from enigmatic black mirrors to neon landscapes, in which hand crafted neon tubes interact with glass panels to offer explorations of light and perception. “I like things that hold grit and grace,” Karen says, a statement that informs her practice and has earned her numerous awards.
Interview
- What place does experimentation hold in your practice?
- Experimentation is central, as I investigate how glass reacts physically and chemically, explore surface textures, and combine handmade neon lights with glass to produce unexpected visual effects. Every trial, whether with neon, glass or mixed media, expands the possibilities and conceptual layers of my work.
- How would you describe your ongoing series Miss Spent Youth?
- My Miss Spent Youth works draw on my Dorset-based childhood, offering a reflection on heritage and nostalgia. I cast wax forms from bean cans or wooden blocks and shoot them with a rifle. Each impact, captured in glass and gilded with gold, preserves the warmth of memories with my father and grandfather.
- How does your background influence your approach to creating art?
- Every piece I make is related to an exploration of space. The architectural and sculptural training I received ensures that even abstract or conceptual works remain grounded in the experience of the viewer moving through and around them.
- What is something people might not know about your work?
- When I work on a large scale pieces, melting enough glass for the project can take up to 24 hours. The real patience comes in the cooling phase. This controlled process can last weeks or even months, and is vital to ensure every form emerges intact and free of stress.
Karen Browning is a master artisan: she began her career in 2000 and she started teaching in 2005
Works
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Karen Browning
