MARRYING LIGHT AND GLASS, AND A BIT OF AI ART

I’ve always been drawn to technology. Maybe it’s the leftover left-brain spark from when I was studying economics back in 2010, always searching for patterns and logic. That part of me has somehow found a way to dance with my right-brain artist self, who wants to make poetic, sensory, sometimes slightly chaotic things. Together, they push me towards creating works that live in the space between precise technicality and delicate emotion.

In my latest exploration, I wanted to see how I could use nothing but light and sandblasted glass to create moving imagery. I’ve always been fascinated by how glass can transform a beam of light into something almost alive. It shifts, scatters and bounces around, creating illusions that make you question what you’re actually seeing. There’s something deeply magical about that moment when a static object seems to move and breathe just through the careful play of light.

This project is still very much in the development stage. At the moment, I am experimenting with different glass surfaces, sandblasting techniques and light temperatures to create images that feel as though they are quietly shifting before your eyes. The final piece will also invoke the emotions that light and specific colours make us feel. Colour has an incredible power to shift our mood, create tension or invite calm, and I want this work to speak to that subtle language in a gentle but powerful way.

My curiosity about technology didn’t appear out of nowhere. Back in 2024, I created a piece called Spiegel im Spiegel with help from our school’s prototype lab. That work introduced me to using motors and basic electronic setups in glass art. It was my first glimpse into how technology could become a collaborator rather than just a support act. Spiegel im Spiegel opened a door that I have been edging further open ever since, leading me to explore the relationship between glass, movement and perception.

In this current project, I have taken that curiosity a step further by bringing AI into my process. I know AI can feel like a threat to creative industries. It raises important questions about authorship, originality and whether machines might one day replace the artist altogether. But I believe that when used thoughtfully, AI can be a remarkable tool. For me, it has become a kind of patient lab partner, a silent mentor who doesn’t mind being asked the same question ten times. In this case, AI has guided me on how to solder and set up LEDs in ways that are safe (and far less likely to land me in A&E).

I never work in silence. Music is always my loyal co-conspirator, shifting moods as the work unfolds. Heavy metal when I need a creative jolt, nostalgic pop for more playful experiments and Afro House when I want the studio to transform into a mysterious late night lab.

At the moment, I have two videos documenting this journey so far. The first is a 2D prototype, a lightbox experiment that helped me understand how light and sandblasted glass could start “speaking” to each other. You can watch it here:

This experiment has since evolved into a 3D cube version. The cube already feels like a living object, opening up new ways for me to explore movement, emotion and perception in space. You can see a preview of this next stage here:

For me, this project isn’t just about making a pretty glowing object. It’s about testing how far I can push material and light together, and about finding new tools, even digital ones, that can support rather than replace the hand and mind of the maker. It’s about curiosity, play and sometimes that mild panic when something nearly sets on fire.

I’m excited, and slightly nervous, to see where this will go next. Whether you’re a fellow glass obsessive, a tech tinkerer or just someone who enjoys seeing strange experiments unfold, I hope you’ll keep following along.