Bert Sterk
Bert Sterk (°1954) has a technical education and worked as a project manager in the Glass factory of Leerdam, The Netherlands. Due to a neurological disease, he had to stop working, which enabled him to get trained in painting and sculpting. After visiting an exhibition of studio glass, he rediscovered his fascination for glass, and signed on for the glass education in Berchem, Belgium.
He is inspired by the things he experiences in his life. Due to his disease, he was forced to quit certain things, but this led to new possibilities. The inspiration of his work is based on the human body and he works with glass combined with other recuperated materials.
“Spinal cord” is a combination of an old weathered rope and cast glass (Figure 2). It symbolizes the life force and the support we need to do things. The weathered rope gives the visualization of his disease with destruction and decay of the nervous system.
A second piece is a combination of self-portraits in different kinds of glass, that are incorporated into a structure (Figure 3). They reflect different feelings and moods, that are an integral part of every human.
As al Dutchman trained in Belgium, he enjoyed the jovial atmosphere in the Academy, where he learned to be patient. In The Netherlands, it is easier to come to a point and obtain certain results faster, but time is needed to be creative. 

Govaerts Krist’l
Govaerts Krist’l (°1961) was trained as a jewelry designer and worked in the family business. She came in contact with the” Academie van Berchem” by her daughter attending the youth program of the Academy and during an “open door” day, she signed up for the glass department.
She is fascinated by the material glass because of its interaction with light with transparency and its reflection.
Her graduation piece is a work constructed out of different little parts, made of pâte-de-verre, in different color combinations to form a large entity.
“I had to experiment a long time to get the right form and the right color combinations. I constructed the form first in paper, but the edges were not clean. Eventually, I made the basic form by 3-D printing, which was used as a template for the glass. Also getting the right color combination was a problem because of the different melting points of the color with creation of strain into the material, which resulted in a lot of breaks. Finally, I was able to master form and color that led to this piece. I like bright colors because of the impact and emotions they convey to the viewer.” (Figure 4)
 

Liliane Van Der Elst
Liliane Van Der Elst (°1953) teached English/Dutch, but had to stop her professional activity due to health issues. During an “open door” day, she came into contact with the work of Marcel Vlamynck and was attracted to the material glass. She participated in different workshops and courses of glass blowing and casting. She experienced the need to be educated in glass if she wanted go ahead and enrolled in the “Academie van Berchem “to learn all facets of the material.
She graduates with the work “Capsules of Life” inspired by the cycle of life with its different aspects of growth and decay. An important aspect of life is its resilience and its ability to recuperate. This give rise to a feeling of infinity and inexhaustibility.
The installation exists of 12 to 14 blown objects, reflecting the seed boxes of poppies or “Capsules” with an earthy brown color (Figure 5). They can be placed in different compositions depending on the exhibition space and the feeling of the space and reflect the artist’s connection with earth and nature. 

 
Collet Bertrand
Collet Bertrand (° 1958) worked as a floorer in the company of his father. He learned how to cut hard materials like tiles into certain forms to make patterns on the floor.
After visiting a studio glass exhibition, he enrolled in the” Academie van Berchem”. He works mainly with flat glass which he fuses and slumps.
The theme of his work is the eternal battle with his inner-self. It is a difficult process of choices and decisions, he has to take. He translated this feeling into his graduation work “Kronkels” (Figure 6). It is build out of several panels of which one series is showing winding bands in different shades of blue that are forming a whole on the different panels, while a second series is transparent or sand blasted. The panels can be combined in different configurations so that the works gives a feeling of infinity and endlessness.

 
Stephane Cador
Stephane Cador (°1953) makes cosmetics based on extracts from the sea. He wanted to extend his creativity from cosmetics to other materials and started a course of sculpting, making objects based on the interaction of the material and himself. He turned to glass because of the interaction of light and color, that other materials like stone or iron could not provide.
His graduation pieces reflects his quest to combine different sensorial feelings in his work. He wants to create a synesthesia, the combination of sound, color, materials and meaning into one work. He uses sheet music of classical composers such as Bach, but also the dissonant sounds of Hard Rock as the base of his work. Also the symbolism of the materials influences his choice of materials (Figure 7). 

Herteweg Anne Marie
Herteweg Anne Marie (1950) works as a laboratory assistant but was always interested in the Decorative Arts.
She took different trainings at the Academy including ceramics, where she came into contact with the glass department. After a 6-year training in Ceramics, she felt limited by the material and wanted to explore the possibilities of glass. She experienced the difficulties of this material which made this training into a “hard labeur”.
Her graduation pieces “Schakels” combines different materials such as wood, ceramic and casted glass into a large piece (Figure 8). The intertwining materials are objects by itself but are placed in big combinations: the same form repeated in different materials give a sort of recognition and stillness.
“I like more the process of designing and the process of thought of the project that the execution itself”.

 
Rieke van der Stoep
Rieke van der Stoep (°1953) was trained in the textie industry and had an education in graphic design, art history, dynamic coaching, sculpting and philosophy.
She started her training at the glass department because she wanted to widen her possibilities for expression in art. She had already been making bronze sculptures for 15 years and wanted to include glass in her sculptures.
“Glass is a totally different material than bronze and both require their own forms and techniques. I did find out that glass is also to combine with other materials and I do not combine it with bronze anymore. The theme in my work in bronze is the relationship with men and life in all its facets, now and over time. The objects in glass I made reflect my own life. “Levenskleed” is an object that shows the different phases of 10 years of my life in graphic symbols. I constructed a labyrinth consisting of glass slumped cushions and placed them on wooden kitchen chairs (Figure 9). They symbolize the life I have lived and I can place them in different combination in space.”

 
Van Poyer Sandra
Van Poyer Sandra (°1978) is a employé at a shopping mal. She became interested in glass during a visit of the “Glas route” in Lier, Belgium and enscribed to the course during an “open day” in the Academie of Berchem.
“My work exists of a combination of float glass and wood. I started to make a work in the form of a star, but gradually I deconstructed the form so that is becomes unrecognizable. It symbolized the transient character of everything, even a star. I did choose for a stacking technique because it makes the piece manageable.”(Figure 10)

Bonnaerens Lutgart
Bonnaerens Lutgart (°1951) works as a nurse and followed different artistic disciplines. The training at the glass department is a continuation of her training in sculpting.
“Glass is a fabulous and challenging material with a lot of possibilities and impossibilities. It comes closest to the result that I want to achieve in my work: transparency and fragmentation but with the possibility to create monumental works. During the first 5 years of my training, I worked mainly with flat glass to create large works. The last 2 years I acquired the technique of lamp blowing. During the first year my inspiration came for bamboos. I created a forest of bamboo but due to the fragility of the work, there were a lot of breaks. The last year I was inspired by the corn in the field and my master piece is a field of glass corn in which the wind blows. It reflects the fragility of nature, but also leaves an impression of the force of nature to the viewer (Figure 11).
After graduation, she wants to study jewelry, where she also hopes to use what she learned in the glass department. 

The graduation shows runs from 10/6/2015 until 29/6/2015 at SD Worx:
Brouwersvliet 2
2000 Antwerpen
België

More information on http://www.stedelijkonderwijs.be/academie-berchem-bk/opleiding/glaskunst
 
Academie Berchem
Frans Van Hombeeckplein 29
B-2600 Berchem
+32 (0)3-292 63 00
info.beeld@academieberchem.be