Max Lamb - Park Ave Shop New York Monday, March 7, 2011 | Phillips

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  • Catalogue Essay

    A series of 23 cylindrical glasses cut with an increasing number of facets, from 3 to 34, exploring the idea that cutting creates flat surfaces by removing glass on an abrasive wheel. The project uses the cutting process as a tool for engineering simple, mathematical geometry rather than cutting facets simply for decorative purposes. The outside diameter of each glass is identical but the wall thickness of the crystal reduces as the number of facets increases. The required thickness is dictated by the cutting process itself and must be communicated first to the glass-blower. From the basic cylinder three vertical cuts will generate a triangular glass column, four cuts a square column, five cuts a pentagon, six cuts a hexagon, ten cuts a decagon and so on. The rotating tool used to mark each glass prior to cutting can divide glasses into as few as 3 sections and as many as 34 sections – from a Triangle to a Tetracontagon. Certain divisions, such as 7, 11 and 13 sides are not available on the dividing machine. The cutting project explores the optical effect of faceted crystal in comparison to the intrinsic value of each glass (related to time, difficulty and failure-rate). Is there an optimum number of facets that achieves a perfect balance between visual effect and cost?

59

Cutting Glass

2009
Mouth-blown crystal
Dimensions vary
From Cutting, Blowing, and Engraving. A project by Max Lamb for J. & L. Lobmeyr. Series of 23, unique by nature of the process.

Park Ave Shop

7 March
New York