Episode
Mathieu Grodet: Expressing Complex Modern Themes via Multi-Disciplinary Glass Works
- Published
- Jun 27, 2025
- Duration seconds
- 3696
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- http://www.talkingoutyourglass.com
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Summary
Using over 17,500 letters of handmade murrine tiles, Mathieu Grodet composed La Déclaration des Droits de l'Homme et du Citoyen , which translated means the Declaration of Human Rights , which was written in 1789. Recreated in mosaic style, dark red was used to represent blood, with the ivory-colored background symbolizing the ivory tower that freedom must be taken from. Intense attention to detail combined with a contemporary message defines Grodet's multi-disciplinary works in glass. A French-born artist living and working in Canada, Grodet also creates thin and elegant glass objects in classic Venetian style, engraved using a Dremel tool with imagery that addresses modern-day ideas and issues. Says Grodet, "Several themes are recurrent: the memory, the inventories, but also the lie (propaganda) or the secret." His work reflects a deep interrogation of the world and its violence. Later, Grodet learned to paint on various glass shapes using enamel, and through these techniques was able to make his illustrations more fanciful and full of color. Though it provided an alternative way to express on glass, the enameling process can be time-consuming and technically difficult. Firing can be stressful, and mistakes are unfixable. In one instance, Grodet invested three months of work on one piece, which he had to abandon after issues with the firing. He hasn't worked with enamel since, but toys with the idea of revisiting these processes that afford so much artistic space. In parallel with glassblowing, Grodet learned flameworking and quickly discovered it was far easier to put together a small flameworking studio than a hot shop. At a Loren Stump workshop presented at the Corning Museum of Glass, Grodet learned the ancient technique of murrine. When the pandemic hit, he fina…