Heike Brachlow was born in Munich and has lived and worked in Essex, UK, for many years. She has shown and taught widely throughout the UK, USA and elsewhere. Here is what she says about her work:
My work explores the interaction of colour, form and light in glass solids. I aim to make forms capable of transformation, ideally in several different ways. My main focus is the investigation of transparent colour in glass. Thick-thin variations of form, curves and angles, the optical properties of glass, and matt or polished surface finishes all impact the appearance of the final object. The works change depending on the viewing angle, when set into motion, and with changing light conditions.
My current body of work is based on a concept called D-form, a three-dimensional form created by joining the edges of two flat shapes with the same perimeter length. Results are wildly different depending on at which point the shapes are joined. I have been exploring these shapes since 2015; they have been changing slowly, elongating, thinning. I aim at a colour fade from almost black in the more solid parts to almost nothing along the edges; polished surfaces let the light in and matt surfaces capture and diffuse it.
