West Midlands glass artists - Helen Millard

West Midlands Glass Artists Take Their Expertise to the Big Apple

Company Name: Three glass artists: Jaqueline Cooley and Jo Newman, both of Telford, and Helen Millard, of Stourbridge

Three glass artists from the West Midlands have won new business to teach at the most prestigious glass museum in the world this month, following help from UK Trade & Investment.

Jaqueline Cooley and Jo Newman, both of Telford, and Helen Millard, of Stourbridge, will be teaching at Corning Museum of Glass, New York, from Monday 26 July to Saturday 31 July.

Their work featured in Same Difference 2009, a Glass Collaborations exhibition of West Midlands and German glass during the 39th Glass Art Society Conference in Corning, which the artists attended last year with support from UK Trade & Investment through Advantage West Midlands’ Interior & Lifestyle Cluster.

Jaqueline Cooley said: “This is a wonderful opportunity that has come about as a direct result of taking part in the exhibition, which has had such a great impact on us.

“We all sold artwork at the event and made excellent contacts for future business, and the museum then invited us to come back this summer, which was fantastic.

“We will be among only a handful of British artists to teach at the world’s premier glass centre and hope this will be the start of a long-standing relationship that could lead to other Glass Collaborations artists following us.

“We are delighted with the support we have had from UK Trade & Investment’s Black Country international trade team and are planning to visit Germany and the Czech Republic with them next year.”

Jaqueline and Jo will be showing students how to use a variety of techniques and materials to create unique forms in the kiln using sledging and slumping moulds.

Helen specialises in the art of cameo engraving and will be introducing students to this delicate technique.

Terry Wood, UK Trade & Investment’s head of international trade at Black Country Chamber of Commerce, said: “This is a fantastic opportunity for the glass artists to teach at one of the premier schools in the world. It follows the collaborative work across Europe and now in the USA.”

Examples of Jo’s and Jaqueline’s work are currently on display at an exhibition entitled “Made in Glass 2010” at the Red House Glass Cone, Wordsley, which runs until Sunday 26 September.

For more information about how UK Trade & Investment can help your business expand into new markets abroad, contact the international trade team at Black Country Chamber of Commerce on Tel: 0845 872 4293.