Elliot Walker became a star of the glassblowing world when he won Netflix show Blown Away 2 – now he has recreated his winning piece from the series to exhibit at the gallery which trained him.
London Glassblowing’s Best in Glass event will see Elliot exhibit the renowned Bodge Job piece which saw him soar to victory in the final round of the televised competition, alongside other new pieces he has created over the last 12 months.
Elliot first began working under the mentorship of Peter Layton – the UK’s oldest glassblower at 84 – in 2013 after Peter spotted him doing an art demonstration at Waterperry Gardens in Oxfordshire.
“I’m really excited to be able to show my work at Peter Layton’s London Glassblowing; it’s been an incredible journey, but London Glassblowing is where it all started,” said Elliot, who worked at the Bermondsey Street studio for seven years.
“There aren’t many studios in the UK at all, and Peter’s is the only place with multiple artists under one roof. It’s an amazing place. I learned so much there. I was very lucky to work on Peter’s various different unusual projects for years. He was always pushing me to do more.”
Founder
Founder of London Glassblowing and studio glass art pioneer, Peter Layton, says he is over the moon to welcome Elliot back to the studio for the show celebrating his success.
“Elliot was a delight to mentor – and it’s absolutely wonderful to have him back in the gallery and studio showcasing his latest work,” said Peter.
“This is set to be a show not to be missed.”
Elliot, 33, says he’s taken great delight in being able to revisit the piece he made on Blown Away 2, as time limits and constraints on the Netflix competition meant he had to do things ‘as quickly and as well as possible’.
“A lot of the sculpting was a lot cruder than I would have liked and I’m a stickler for details, so I always planned to revisit this piece from the show,” Elliot added.
Partner
“It will be great to share the work with the UK audiences as well, as we’ve been doing so much work with people in the US after the show that it’s great to bring it home.”
The show is a joint event with Elliot’s partner (in both life and work), Bethany Wood. The couple have worked together on everything over the last five years, yet this is the first time the pair of them have taken part in a show together – an aspect which makes the Best in Glass event all the more special.
The London Glassblowing show will feature a live demonstration online from Elliot and Beth on October 9th 2021, in which the couple will create one of Beth’s Molten Landscapes pieces live on camera. The demonstration coincides with and forms part of London Craft Week.
Bethany, an established artist herself, has been creating glass art for the past seven years, while simultaneously assisting Elliot and teaching the craft to newcomers.
Floral
Joining Bethany and Elliot in the exhibition will be artist Laura Hart, who utilises blown bases created by Elliot to add her own stunning glass floral embellishments.
The Best in Glass event runs at London Glassblowing, in-gallery and online, between October 5 and 30.
For more information on the Best in Glass event see: https://londonglassblowing.co.uk/exhibition/best-in-glass/
Apply for a link to Elliot’s live demonstration here: https://londonglassblowing.co.uk/exhibition/elliot-walker-demo/
See also: The Glenfiddich Glass Portraits That Are Breaking Boundaries
