Last May, our Master-Glass group was lucky enough to get invited to do a workshop weekend at Bokart Glass in Zagreb. I booked the flight and got us settled in a nice villa in the city and the fun could start!
From Bokar to Bokart
The company was started by father Kvesic, who named the business after the beautiful ford Bokar in Dubrovnik. At the moment Bokart is being run by the ambitious brothers Daniel and Neven Kvesic. They welcomed us warmly at their company and we immediately got a tour of all the machines, techniques and experiments Bokart is involved in. They work mainly with float glass, but go far beyond any regular glass company, by using different paints, fusing techniques, printing and sandblasting to get the results they are looking for. And they think big. They work on a large architectural scale with artist and architects. That is the scale I am aspiring to work in as well. So I was super excited to see everything.
Fun with Float
Everyone in our group had something prepared and some of us immediately had an idea what they wanted to do and how to do it. Some of us needed a bit more time to figure it out, but all the employees like Andrea and Ivan were very helpful and soon we all got to work. I mainly wanted to make a couple of samples using different techniques that I could show clients when they are interested in a design. I tried to do as many things I hadn’t done before as I could now I had the chance.
The Sky is the Limit
First I made an abstract nature painting using nano paint and I laminated that onto an pieces of glass that I had sandblasted. This piece is a great sample for a semi-transparent wall with a pattern on it. The lamination and sandblasting give the piece a lot of depth, something you cannot do with foil. I also made my own structured glass and airbrushed a design on it. Later I made an abstract painting with sandblasted glass. Finally Daniel and Neven were so kind to print a picture I made of my reproduction of Judith (in progress) on a large piece of glass. Ivan made a mirrored back-ground and I love it! There was really no limit to what we could do and everyone in our group made stunning work.
More to see in Zagreb
Next to working hard, the Kvesic brothers also showed us the town and told us a lot about Zagreb. We ate some great food and shared a couple of drinks. My friends know I have a weird thing with Slavic speaking countries, so I naturally loved Zagreb and tried to show off the few words I could understand and speak. In the end I regretted not adding a day extra to enjoy the area more and I would really like to come back. Hopefully with a commission to make with Bokart!
