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Tolly has a degree in Textiles and is also a serious photographer. Both of these elements are clear within her Glasswork and these skills are also often an integral part of the piece. Tolly is constantly mesmerized by the sometimes overlooked details of nature which are a continual source of inspiration for her art. Her enthusiasm for the natural world stems from her family background of nature-orientated passions whilst her wider appreciation cores from extensive foreign travel, and taking part in wildlife research projects abroad.
Having worked under some of the most influential and eminent glass
artists in Sweden and the U.S, this has fuelled Tolly's delight in the
material itself. By using a combination of techniques she bases her work
around the qualities in glass she appreciates the most – its
vulnerability but also its solidity.
With this wide appreciation of what glass has to offer, Tolly’s work
ranges from the popular, tiny, pate-de-verre ‘Whimsicals’ which are a
fun, contemporary take on the ancient little mini glass objects found in
museums, to large scale casts such as the recent 14 Galapagos Finch
Beaks which she sculptured to commemorate the 150th Anniversary of The
Origin of Species and which are having a significant impact on the
Science and Art fields alike.
Tolly’s ‘Living Rock’ series focus on the relationship between living
and non-living things, the solidity of one and the fragility of the
other. As they grow and become more entwined, their boundaries merge
together as one. As with her photography, where she accentuates colour
or form by using comparison, this mergence of solid cast glass and
fragile pate-de-verre accentuates the beauty of both and the surprise
that each is composed of the same material.
“Using methods such as Pate-de–Verre I aim to extract and express the
beauty of glass in its very fragile state, forming a ‘crust’ or an
exoskeleton of what could be there - an artwork that has shed its skin
and is left bare, exposed, raw and beautiful”
Qualifications
1997-99 BA Honours Textiles: Winchester School of Art / Rhode Island School of Design
1996 Diploma in Foundation Studies: Winchester School of Art
A-levels: Hills Rd Sixth Form College, Cambridge
Awards
1995 Award for Extra-curricular Excellence, Hills Road Sixth Form College,
Cambridge
1998 1st place: Amoco Student Design Competition, (Weave) USA
Honourable Mention ~ ~ ~ ~
Honourable Mention ~ ~ ~ ~
1999 Georgina von Etzdorf Award for Innovation in Textiles
2008 South Cambs District Council Built Heritage Award scheme: 1st Place Contemporary Design sympathetic to the Historic Environment for ‘The Ark’
2008 CGS Bursary for masterclasses at The Liquid Glass Centre
Artistic Experience
1997 3 weeks Personal Assistant Bertil Vallien, Kostaboda, Sweden
1998 Semester at Rhode Island School of Design, US, studying ‘liquid to Solid’ casting with Daniel Clayman
Casting with Rick Mills, Pilchuck Glass School, Stanwood, U.S.
1999 Degree Show Co-ordinator, Winchester, U.K.
Glass Beadmaking course, Pilkington Glass, Stourbridge ,U.K.
Pate-de-verre course, Corning Museum of Glass,, USA
2000 Photographic tuition, Cambridge Darkroom
2001-03 Interior Design work and sales with Natalie Clegg Design Ltd, Cambs.
Botanical illustration, Cambridge University short course.
Nikon Professional Digital SLR course, London
2003-04 Design of own Website & set up of own business -‘Tolly’s Ark’
2004 Glass Techniques course with Helen Maurer, Central St.Martins College of Art, London.
Assistant to Layne Rowe, glassblower,
2006 ‘Woven structures’ course with Mary Butcher, Cambridge
Cast Glass tuition with Lucy Swift, London.
2007 Design, photography, sales and distribution of ‘Live Art’ cards
Co-founded CAMBA with other artistic professionals within the Cambridge Area.
Design & implementation of CAMBA Website
2008 Glass Mouldmaking Masterclass with Fiaz Elson, Liquid Glass Centre, Wingfield.
2008 Glass Coldworking techniques with Fiaz Elson, Liquid Glass Centre, Wingfield.
2008 ‘Printing with Light’ course, London Glassblowing, Shelley James & Louis Thompson
2008-09 Rental of Large Scale photographic work to Marshalls Aerospace, Cambridge
Selected Exhibitions
1998 Neocon ’98 Chicago, USA
1999 Action Japan’, Nottingham Playhouse
Winchester School of Art
New Designers, London
2002-04 Darrel Nantais Gallery, Linton, Cambs.
2003-05 Bridges of St.Ives, Cambs.
2004 ‘Through the Lens of the Artist, 7 Contemporary Photographers’,
Limberhurst Arts, Cambs.
2004-05 ‘Affordable Art’, S.C.D.C., Cambourne, Cambs.
Aisini Gallery, St.Ives, Cambs.
Venue, Arts Picture House, Cambridge
Arthouse Gallery, Brighton,
Art Asset Online Gallery,
2006 Bruno’s Brasserie, Cambridge
2007 ‘Ray of Light’ joint exhibition with Layne Rowe, The Ark, Cambs.
‘E-merge’ Solo Exhibition,The Upper Gallery, Cambridge.
2008 Affordable Art Fair, The Café Jello Gallery @ Battersea Park, London
Photographic Exhibition, Williams Art, Cambridge
Café Jello Glass Gallery, Cambridge.
Angela Mellor Gallery, Ely
The Cambridge Galleries, Whittlesford
‘Six Days’, The Shop, Cambridge
2009 Cambridge Glass Fair
‘New Beginnings ‘09’, SDC Gallery, London
Primavera, Cambridge
Zest Gallery -Work taken to SOFA, New York
National Glass Fair, National Motorcycle Museum, West Midlands
'Seeing the Light : Finch by Finch' Solo Exhibition, Museum of Zoology, Cambridge
Sea Pictures Gallery, Clare, Suffolk
Cambridge Glass Fair, Chilford Hall, Cambs
'Melting Point', Pyramid Gallery, York
'Land and Sea', Angela Mellor Gallery, Ely
Art London with Zest Gallery, London
'Genesis' '09, SDC Gallery, London
Selected Commissions
1997 Glass Screen design, Nason Davis Ltd, Cambridge
2002 Large Silk and Glass wall-hangings ‘Studio 1’ Beauty Salon
2003 Glass Screen design, Nason Davis Japan Ltd, Tokyo
2003-04 Collection of photographs & drawings, Bridges of St. Ives
Various private commissions in Oils inc. ‘Balloon Flight over Africa’, Jo’burg, S.A.
Photographic commission for tree-themed meeting rooms, Art Contact
Photography for Itchy Guide to Cambridge
2004-05 Design and production of bespoke Wedding Stationery
Photographs & Brochure design, Travis Perkins Ltd.
2004,06 Various private commissions in Pen & Ink & Watercolour
2005-06 Greeting Card commissions in Pen & ink: Woodmansterne Publications
Hotchpotch Publications
Various photographic commissions inc. Rider Sale Associates, Eversham
Venue restaurant, Cambridge
2006 Allen & Overy Ltd, Bishops Square, London: Large Scale photographs, flora and landscapes of Italy, Spain, Holland and U.K
2005-08 Various private photographic and glass-based commissions
2008 Orchard St Investment Management, Cork St, London: Large scale photographs on Canvas
2008 Glass Baby-feet commissions
2008 Glass mascot for Antique Morgan