Jonas Noël Niedermann

Glassblower

©Cæciliie Philipa Vibe Pedersen

©Jonas Noël Niedermann

©Cæciliie Philipa Vibe Pedersen

Enamoured by glass

Jonas learned his skills from international glass masters
His work celebrates the connection between tradition and the future
He started his glass blowing aged 14 years old

Swiss born Jonas has been passionate about glass since he first saw glass art at the age of nine during a visit to Iittala Glass Factory. By the time he turned 14, he went to Glasfachschule in Zwiesel, Germany to become an apprentice glass blower. Learning from the Bavarian Masters and later on working in glass workshops in Italy, Austria, Denmark and USA, he developed a unique appreciation for the intricacies of glass, studying everything from the big picture to the smallest details. As a result, he has an artistic voice that is strongly individual while echoing the works of historical greats. He uses a self-invented technique, applied in his series Floating Lines which consists of the rapid folding of coloured strings in hot glass.

Interview

©Cæciliie Philipa Vibe Pedersen

©Cæciliie Philipa Vibe Pedersen

What made you settle in Denmark?: After working for leading glass studios Møhl&Drivsholm and Backhaus&Brown, I was Artist in Residence at The Royal Academy of Fine Arts and Design, I was offered a working position as gaffer at Holmegaard Works, a new museum and knowledge centre for glass. It was also love which made me settle in Denmark.
What is your invented technique?: Through a new approach of folding glass, the opaque coloured lines float in transparent glass without touching each other. The clear glass reveals lines that appear and disappear within its depth, creating a sense of surface and a three-dimensional graphical pattern.
How is your work bridging tradition with the future?: I’ve expanded upon ancient techniques to create a new approach in which graphical patterns are made by hand folding glass in multiple layers, like emulating the work of a 3D printer using glass to link history, technology, craftsmanship and start a conversation between tradition and the future.
What is the story behind Modular Shapes?: The inspiration for this work derives from transparency, light, depths, and colour gradations. This work is made through several labour steps of blowing, coldworking, sculpting and assembling glass. Changing constantly the gentle interaction between translucence and colour transitions.

Jonas Noël Niedermann is an expert artisan: he began his career in 2013