Erin Pell

Erin Pell is a glass artist based in Saskatoon Saskatchewan, with over two decades of experience working with hot glass. She has always felt a deep connection with nature and its balance between resilience and fragility. Her work is inspired by this connection, and the strong bond and associations we have with them. I don’t attempt to make exact replicas of nature but reflect the feel and emotion of each plant.

The technique I employ is known as lampworking. It entails melting and sculpting glass rods in the flame of a propane and oxygen torch. I craft each piece without the use of molds or presses, relying solely on a few hand tools like shears and tweezers. This approach ensures that every piece has a distinctively organic feel, making each unique.

How would you describe what craft is?

For me fine craft is the balance between art and skilled trade.

Craft reconnects you with the humanity and value behind the items you use and surround yourself with. Making and purchasing fine craft is an act of rebellion against the mass produced disposable culture we currently live in.

What inspires you?

I’m inspired by the connections and emotions we have connected to nature and it’s balance of resilience and fragility. Hearing the stories and symbolism customers have with different flowers is always so heartwarming and interesting. The flow and movement of the glass in the flame is a huge inspiration for me as well.

Where did you learn your craft?

I started playing around with lampworking while I was apprenticing with glass blower Mark Chapman at an artist colony in Palm Springs in the desert of California in 1999. At first, I was making beads to use in my jewelry designs. But after returning to Canada and there not being much of a market for glass beads, I began combining glass-blowing techniques with lampworking techniques and started making sculptural off-mandrel pendants from soft glass. Which eventually led to the sculptural style that I do today.