Emma Bourke

Lampworker

Connecting people and plants

Emma was the first from her college to graduate in lampworking
She is inspired by the medicinal uses of plants
One of her pieces is held in the National Museum of Ireland

Emma Bourke’s studio is a sea of tiny, colourful leaves, petals and other plant parts. While researching the famous glassmakers Leopold and Rudolf Blaschka, Emma discovered they built their scientific models in sections. This how she now works, painstakingly creating hundreds of miniature components before assembling them into a finished piece. To anyone else this might seem monotonous, but Emma cheerfully explains that working this way means she can tackle multiple projects at once. Her work speaks of folklore and cultural identity, exploring the concept of biophilia: the innate human tendency to seek connections with nature.

Interview

In what way is your work linked to Irish culture?: Mythology and folklore have always been obsessions of mine. I think the stories we tell root us in our culture and connect us to a place. As an artist I am interested in the idea that communities are influenced by the natural environment that surrounds them.
How did you choose glass as a material?: I actually started working with glass as a teenager. When I was 15 my mother sent me to a local stained glass artist for work experience. I spent two weeks scrubbing the studio and painting walls but at the end of that time I got to make a piece. I was hooked!
How did you set up your studio?: When I was a student I went on an exchange to the Rochester Institute of Technology in the US and I brought equipment home with me. In 2014 I received a Golden Fleece Award so I bought two kilns and fixed up a stable on my parents’ farm. I needed a place of my own.
How do you juggle being both a single mother and a maker?: Being a mother and an artist is challenging. Normally I can work my schedule around my son's school and activities. I am lucky to have the opportunity to pursue my artistic practice while being able raise my son. It can mean working late into the evenings but it's worth it.

Emma Bourke is an expert artisan: she began her career in 2009