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ARMEL DESRUES - glass artist and craftsman

Makers at the Workhouse Gallery

At the Workhouse Gallery we work with makers from across the UK. Armel Desrues is a French glass artist currently working at the Baldwin Guggisberg studio based just outside of Presteigne. We stock his hand blown tableware - glasses, carafes and bowls in beautiful jewel colours.

Armel Desrues Workhouse Gallery Presteigne
Workhouse Gallery Presteigne

Armel Desrues was introduced to the world of craft from an early age: his father a cabinet maker, his mother an antiquarian. Armel has always been inspired by the handmade and hand crafted. At the age of fourteen he made the decision to finish traditional education and concentrate on learning how to blow glass. At the Ecole Nationale du Verre in the Auverne, Armel spent four years studying and exploring the extraordinary natural fluidity of molten glass. A passion for this material and a determination to become truly skilled was born. 

After he completed his diploma, Armel crossed the Atlantic to Montreal in Canada, where he continued his studies at the Ecole du Verre. Here he enjoyed the freedom to experiment and explore many different techniques in glass: lost wax, flame working, cutting on glass, casting, fusing, slumping. During these three years, Armel developed his own style which he now applies to his beautiful signature pieces. He also enjoys working on simple objects which echo his earlier training in France: everyday vessels known in France as ‘the Art of the Table’.

Armel has enjoyed some fascinating opportunities. He worked in the studio of the Corning Museum of Glass in New York, an amazing institution dedicated to the art, history and science of glass. At the end of his studies he was invited to do an artist's residency in Taipei, where he spent three months.

Armel had long admired the work of Monica Guggisberg and Philip Baldwin, two international artists based in Paris where he did an internship at the age of eighteen. Armel's completion of schooling in Montreal coincided with Philip and Monica's move from Paris to their workshops near Presteigne. The timing was extremely fortuitous as they needed an assistant and Armel was keen to work with them. At the studio Armel works on projects and commissions with Philip and Monica, but also concentrates on his own work and art. These photos show Armel at work on his own collection at the Baldwin Guggisberg studio.

Armel Desrues
Armel Desrues Baldwin Guggisberg
Armel Desrues Workhouse Gallery
Armel Desrues
Armel Desrues glass blower
Armel Desrues glass artist
Armel Desrues glass blowing art
Armel Desrues glass
Armel Desrues
Armel Desrues

Here are more photographs of Armel's work :Armel Desrues
Armel Desrues
Armel Desrues