Meet Peter Layton

Peter Layton is one of the founding fathers of studio glass in the UK. At 89, he is still to be found in the studio at London Glassblowing, situated on Bermondsey Street. Established fifty years ago, the studio and gallery have nurtured generations of emerging and established talent.

Born in Prague and originally from in Bradford, Peter trained in ceramics at the Central School of Art and Design before discovering glassblowing while teaching in the United States in the mid-1960s — a craft then so new it was being reinvented in real time. He returned to Britain determined to give it a foothold here, establishing his first Thames-side workshop in 1976 in an old towage works at Rotherhithe, where he pioneered the revival of iridising techniques largely dormant since the Art Nouveau era.

Throughout the 1980s, as Chair of British Artists in Glass, he represented the UK at major international exhibitions. His two-metre high Pyramid shown at Novy Bor, Czechoslovakia's "Glass Olympics" remains one of the celebrated works of that period. He has exhibited globally, written several books on the craft, founded the Contemporary Glass Society, and completed large-scale public commissions.

The indefatigable Peter continues introducing contemporary glass art to new audiences while persistently advancing his own restless creative practice.