September 18-22, 2025. 10am-5pm, with a lunch break from 1pm-2pm daily.
In this immersive five-day workshop, Emma Varga shares her original technique of fusing and casting multiple layers of glass—a method she has honed over the past 25 years to remarkable effect. This process allows students to layer thin glass sheets into mosaic-like compositions, creating intricate, three-dimensional images within transparent sculptural forms. The course emphasizes new ways of conceptualizing and designing in three dimensions, using the unique properties of glass to convey a sense of depth, movement, and visual intrigue within each cast piece.
Whether you’re a beginner or have advanced glass fusing skills, you’ll create and complete your own three-dimensional glass objects during the course. Throughout, Emma will provide access to a digital gallery of her work, showcasing detailed close-ups that reveal the intricacies of layered glass techniques.
A significant component of the course is mastering firing schedules tailored for fused and cast glass, which Emma will explain in depth. Additionally, you’ll learn the basics of grinding and polishing 3D glass objects, equipping you with the knowledge needed to enhance the clarity and detail of your work. Join us to explore this exciting technique and develop new ways of creating images within transparent glass forms.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Emma Varga, born in Yugoslavia, graduated from the University of Applied Arts in Belgrade, where she trained as a glass sculptor and designer. After moving to Australia in 1995, she continued to create glass art, building her international profile through participation in over 100 prominent exhibitions and more than 30 solo shows worldwide.
Varga’s recent work focuses on environmental concerns, using her art to visually communicate both the beauty and fragility of the natural world. Over her 50-year career, she developed two innovative glass techniques: Multiple Layers Fusing, which enables intricate, controlled three-dimensional imagery within glass slabs, and a distinctive method within the Pâte de Verre technique, particularly suited to exploring themes of fragility. Her pioneering methods have drawn international interest, and she has been invited to demonstrate and teach them at major glass centers globally.
In 2023, Varga’s career culminated in a retrospective exhibition at the Wagga Wagga Art Glass Gallery, home to Australia’s National Glass Collection. Her work is included in numerous museum collections across Australia, the United States, and Europe. She has been awarded several prestigious honors, including Australia Council Grants for New Work in 2006 and 2012, the Stephen Procter Fellowship at ANU Canberra in 2017, and the Arctic Circle Artist Residency in 2017. In 2021, she received the Creative NSW Grant to fund four exhibitions marking her 50th anniversary in glass art.
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