Ondřej Strnadel

Glass sculptor

©Tomáš Rubín

©Petr Willert

©Tomáš Rubín

From hand to mouth

Ondřej's works result from his skill and technical brilliance
He blows glass into a wooden mould
Using delicate colours helps emphasise the shape

The form of Ondřej Strnadel’s objects comes from his direct hands-on experience with the material. He carefully observes the behaviour of the glass bubble as it is blown and, at the right moment, by making small, refined movements with his mouth, he changes the shape of it. The resulting objects, either abstract or suggesting shapes such as soap or corn, have a silky matt surface and delicate colours that change shade depending on the thickness of the glass and its translucency, therefore emphasising the object's shape. Thanks to Ondřej's fine craftsmanship, he is sought after by many artists who want to harness his skills to realise their ideas.

Interview

©Tomáš Rubín

©Tomáš Rubín

What brought you to glassmaking?: I inherited my passion for glassmaking from my dad. I became a glassblowing apprentice and perfected my knowledge of the craft during my four years at a glassmaking school. I also learned a lot during my industrial design studies at the T. Baťa University in Zlín.
How does the hand blowing process work?: It allows me to achieve a certain shape without having to fundamentally modify the object with any instrument that would leave traces on the surface of the glass. That means not only having to blow the liquid glass, but also to suck it in, in order to deform it.
How do you view the future of glassmaking?: I’ve been teaching glassmaking to students for over 20 years and there are always young people who fall in love with the magic of glass. Right now, there are not as many of them as I would like there to be, however I don't worry about the future of Czech glassmaking.
What are you working on right now?: I am gradually developing my organic morphology of hand blown objects inspired by nature and things around us. I also work on different commissions, such as sport trophies that I design and produce.

Ondřej Strnadel is a master artisan: he began his career in 1996 and he started teaching in 2000