Katharine Coleman MBE

Glass Engraving

About

Katharine’s work has been exhibited widely in the UK, Europe, USA, China, New Zealand and Japan and can be seen in many public collections and publications. The recent V&A film "How Was It Made? Glass Engraver Katharine Coleman" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=230uCZj2RPs illustrates her work well, mostly one-off pieces, blown to her design before being cut and engraved. Katharine works on clear lead crystal with colour overlays, blown to her design by Potter Morgan Glass. She is particularly interested in copper wheel engraving on glass. Awarded an MBE in 2009 for her contribution to glass engraving, Katharine’s work is in many public collections including the V&A, Corning Museum of Glass (USA), Coburg (D), MUDAC (Lausanne CH), Nat. Museums of Scotland, Nat Museums of N Ireland, Nat Glass Centre Sunderland and the Bavarian State Glass Museum.

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“The V&A writes: “Katharine Coleman … is perhaps the foremost glass engraver working in Britain today, one of the few committed to working in a contemporary idiom.” ”

Katharine Coleman MBE

Process

Katharine likes to explore the optical properties of glass, drawing the eye beyond the surface, creating illusions of one body floating within another. Her inspiration comes from the beauty found in ordinary things, whether natural history or the urban landscape.
Katharine feels strongly that engraving on glass no longer needs to be traditional in style or content, though she prefers the precision and sensitivity of traditional wheel techniques. Occasionally she has enjoyed the challenge of collaborative work with other makers, including silversmiths.

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