STEFFEN PLISTERMANN

Steffen Philistermann’s talents are many having evolved from woodworking to painting to sculpture and finally into glass blowing where they coalesced into making the unique stone-like pieces we see here. Plistermann unique and elegant pieces are painterly, sculptural and textured glass, reflecting his creative path.

IN HIS OWN WORDS

After 25 years as a painter and sculptor, I now find myself blowing and sculpting glass. My fascination with organic colors, textures and shapes has finally found the perfect outlet … Glass is ideal material for the organic process I desire. Between heat, gravity, and centrifugal force, glass takes on a life of its own and as the artist, I end up collaborating with the material, rather than trying to dictate an outcome. When working with glass, I am approaching color from a painter’s viewpoint. However, colored glass does not blend and mix in the way paint does. Through a lot of experimentation, I developed a process based on colored glass that has been ground to a powder size. Layering these powders and heating and cooling them in specific ways allows me to create these unique, distinctive finishes.”