The Techniques Used for Restoring Glass Art Sculpture

Tristram and Isolde optical glass sculpture by Michael Bokrosh

Glass art sculpture dates back hundreds, if not thousands, of years. Pieces dating back to the ancient Egyptian civilization have been found, still intact. Modern day glass art uses many of the same techniques as these ancient glass artisans. Of course, over time artists have added new techniques and skills to make beautiful glass artwork.

Glass, by its nature, is both beautiful and fragile. It is quite vulnerable to breakage. If you own or collect glass art sculpture you may find yourself in need of glass restoration or repair at some point.

Much of the glass art repair uses the same techniques that were used in the creation of these amazing glass art pieces. Some of the techniques used in glass art restoration include:

  • Glass blowing – Uses a combination of sand and soda lime, along with coloring agents, to produce a raw material which is melted to form molten glass. The glass is “gathered” from the furnace onto a blowpipe, and air is blown into the pipe by a glassblower who is also moving glass and using special tools to quickly shape the molten glass before it cools. Once properly shaped, the art glass sculpture is placed in an annealing oven to slowly cool the glass down until it is stable. If it cools too quickly, the glass art may break or crack. Sometimes cracks in existing glass sculptures can be the result of improper annealing time or incompatibility between the colors within the glass sculpture.
  • Hot Sculpting – This technique is used when a solid metal rod gathers the molten glass from the furnace, and it is shaped with the use of special tools. While the process is similar to blown glass, no actual blowing takes place in the sculpture. The hot sculpting process tends to make much larger solid pieces of glass art; masters of this form are many both in Europe and in the United States.
  • Cold Working – This method of glass work involves working with glass while it’s in its cold or annealed state.
  • Cold Sculpture - The artist will use a variety of techniques; including sandblasting, cutting, grinding, polishing, and engraving to create a unique piece of art. Cold working also includes the application of special glues to adhere glass pieces together. These techniques are especially important for glass art repair and restoration. Micheael Bokrosh is a master coldworker and has been doing it for several decades.
Midas optical glass sculpture by Michael Bokrosh

The best person to perform glass restoration is an individual that is trained in a variety of glass techniques. Michael Bokrosh is a skilled artisan who has worked in glass creation and glass art repair for 00 years. He has trained in some of the best schools in Europe and the United States.

Michael produces highly-coveted and sought-after, original glass art sculptures made with optical crystal glass. These glass sculptures are featured in glass galleries throughout the United States. See examples of Michael’s work in our online gallery.

Contact our glass sculpture repair and restoration experts today.