Most artwork asks you not to touch it. This one insists.

Over three hours you’ll build a deep-relief glass landscape from thick, jewel-bright ingots — a piece with real weight and real depth, where the glass sits proud of the surface and catches light differently every hour of the day. Run your fingers across it and you’ll find cool, smooth pebbles of colour. Look again tomorrow and you’ll spot something you missed.

It’s the kind of piece you don’t get bored of. That’s the whole point of it.

What Makes This One Different

Most fused glass is flat. Beautiful, but flat.

This piece is fired at contour — a firing that softens and fuses the glass just enough to bond it, while keeping every ridge, dome and edge intact. Nothing flattens out. The surface stays three-dimensional, tactile and alive.

The thick ingots do something clever too. They act like lenses, magnifying the colours and details sitting underneath them. That’s where the depth comes from: you’re not looking at the piece, you’re looking into it.

What You’ll Learn

• Choosing a colourway – how colours behave together in the kiln, and how to build a palette that works
• Building in relief – layering and placing glass to create height, shadow and movement
• Working with ingots – using thick glass elements for magnification and depth
• Composition for abstract work – balance, rhythm and negative space in a landscape without a horizon
• Understanding contour firing – why this schedule keeps texture where a full fuse would lose it

Jen guides you through every stage. You bring the instinct for colour; she’ll handle the technical decisions.

What You’ll Make

One fused glass abstract landscape, 30cm x 30cm, in colours of your own choosing.

Because you pick your own palette and place every piece yourself, no two ever come out the same. Deep ocean blues, warm earth tones, something bold and contemporary — it’s your call.

Two Ways to Finish It

Frame it for the wall – framed size 50cm x 50cm, for £35 extra . Hung where it catches natural light, the relief throws shadows that shift through the day.

Or turn it into a bowl – we can slump your piece into a shallow bowl instead, perfect as a coffee table centrepiece. No extra charge. Just let us know on the day.

Both work beautifully. It depends whether you want to look at it or reach for it.

Perfect For

• Anyone drawn to texture and wanting to make something they can actually touch
• Beginners who want a genuinely impressive result from a single afternoon
• Experienced fusers curious about contour firing and relief work
• People who love colour and want free rein over their own palette
• Anyone looking for a substantial handmade gift — or a serious piece for their own wall
• Groups and friends booking together (there’s no maximum number on this one)

Your Tutor: Jennifer Barker – Lead Instructor & Founder

Jennifer has been working with glass for over 30 years, having discovered her passion for the medium while studying at Wolverhampton and Staffordshire Universities, where she completed a BA and MA in Glass.

Her expertise spans the full spectrum of glass techniques – from delicate kiln-formed pieces to large architectural installations. Jennifer’s specialist areas include kiln-formed glass, surface manipulation, and kiln-casting, but she’s equally passionate about traditional techniques like stained glass and copper foiling. For 12 years, Jennifer was Head of the Glass Department at Glyndŵr University, where she discovered that teaching glass art was almost as addictive as making it.

What sets Jennifer apart as an instructor is her genuine love for sharing knowledge. She believes that anyone can learn to work with glass beautifully – it just takes the right guidance, encouragement, and plenty of hands-on practice.

Can’t make the date? Please email us to register your interest at jen@cheshireschoolofglass.co.uk and we can let you know when further dates are added.