Amanda Dziedzic is a Melbourne-based glass artist working from her own studio, HotHaus, in Heidelberg West. She is known for her love of colour, and is best recognised for her expressive series, Yumemirus and Colourscape. Ahead of her Makers in Residence as part of the 2021 Craft Contemporary program, Eloise Sim took a moment to chat with Amanda and learn a little more about her practice.
Amanda, your medium and love is glass! Can you tell us a little about yourself? and how your love for glass art eventuated into opening Hot Haus studio with Laurel Kohut in Heidelberg West?
I am a Melbourne based Glass Blower perhaps best known for my Yumemiru works or my “Colourscape’” Designs which were first featured with the Design files. Currently I co-run my own studio; HotHaus with my buisness partner and good friend, Laurel Kohut. Laurel and I have been working together for years, hiring different studios all across Melbourne to make our work. It was getting harder and harder to rent enough time to make the amount of work we were getting inundated with. We both knew the way forward was to take a giant leap of faith and open our own studio, now based in Heidelberg West.
We are excited about your upcoming Makers in Residence as part of Craft Contemporary. During your residency, you plan to share insight into the Hot Haus studio and some of the processes used in the creation of your blown glass pieces. Can you give us a bit of a teaser or an insight into some of the works you intend to make?
I think this is a great opportunity for people to get a real glimpse into a hot glass studio. There is ALOT of work that goes on behind the scenes to get to the final product. I am hoping to share a really nice snapshot of what we do at Hothaus. I think the most exciting thing to watch is most likely the team in full flight. The glass blowing process can then be fast paced and like a well oiled machine. We may do anything from lighting production or our homewares ranges.
Glass has a magic allure - what do you think is so special/important about the medium?
I mean what other medium goes from a liquid to a solid?! It is literally magic before your eyes! Seeing the medium transform from its, hot and viscous state to a cold and stable state is always exciting. Colours change dramatically in the heat and sometimes it can be a surprise what comes out of the kiln the next day. It’s also about the light and the way the glass can capture that. There’s no other material like it
In response to COVID-19, a lot of people have re-evaluated the way they work, what impact has the pandemic had on your practice? Were they positive or negative? Have you adopted any new skills or techniques that you otherwise may not have?
Starting and now running a glass studio in a pandemic is fraught with challenges. It has been at times a very rough road to pursue. There were times when both Laurel and myself doubted what we were doing in such an uncertain time. Now though, as we start to navigate our way through the pandemic, I think we both feel very lucky to have our own studio to work from. It means we can control our work environment and provide ourselves with a safe place to work. I think it has also made us really focus in house on our products and offerings and really build our online presence.
We are always curious about where makers and artists find inspiration. What are some of the unexpected places you draw inspiration from?
I think it is extremely difficult in a pandemic to find the joy and inspiration that said joy can bring, with so many of our daily liberties contained. With this in mind, I think I go inwards and go small to look for inspiration. I also go back to basics, I like to draw on colour for inspiration. I will always rely on nature for a source of inspiration, even if that source is only my small back garden at the moment.
Any underrepresented artist we should be looking at right now?
I think I am probably a bit out of the loop at the moment and very much missing out on going to exhibitions to get my fix of new and up and coming artists… I don’t know if I’d call them underrepresented, by I love Lucy Roleff’s paintings and I very much love the works of jeweller, Zoe Grigoris, just stunning, intricate works.
Thank you for your time Amanda, and we look forward to seeing you and the HotHaus team in your upcoming Makers in Residence
Interviewed by Eloise Sim, Curatorial and Programs Assistant
