The view of glass blowers working in synergy to produce colourful artefacts is among the sights mostly associated with the Ta’ Qali Artisan Village. A number of companies excel at this craft, with their artisans each being responsible for a part of the process, from the first gathering of glass, to applying coloured glass, creating patterns within the colours, shaping, and finishing.
When Mdina Glass fired up its furnace and opened its doors in 1968 in what was an ex-RAF hangar, the company became Malta’s first glassmaker and, in doing so, introduced a craft to our shores that we have now become renowned for around the world. In the early days, Mdina Glass relied on a couple of knowledgeable artisans from overseas, complemented by a team of inexperienced but enthusiastic trainees, some of whom remained with the company for decades. One particular apprentice, Joseph Said, joined a few months after the company opened and worked his way up to production manager before taking over the company in 1985.
Mdina Glass has established itself as one of the local market leaders in its field. The glassmakers have thrived thanks to a dedication towards attention to detail and, in later years, constant desire to innovate. In the early years, the main products were small decorative items like vases, bowls and figurines – all small enough for tourists to take back home in their luggage. However, the new millennium saw the drive for innovation take hold. Remaining true to traditional handcrafted glassmaking, Mdina Glass began creating glassware that was more ‘interior décor’. This saw the introduction of various new offerings: larger vases and bowls, lighting, lanterns, sculptures and practical items like pouring jugs, tumblers, and oil and vinegar bottles. Yet the base techniques and tools – blow pipes, calipers and paddles – remain the same.
Valletta Glass has been operating from its premises at the Ta’ Qali Artisan Village including a workshop and a retail shop since 1979. Thousands of tourists and locals visit each year and assist live glassblowing demonstrations where custom designed glassware is produced. Visitors can observe the craftsmen’s ability to combine and exploit the glass aesthetic qualities of transparency, translucence, fluid form and texture with its inherent structural strength and architectural qualities. Valletta Glass has evolved throughout the past decades and has grown and diversified by continuously providing quality artistic works that exceed one’s expectations.
Phoenician Glass Blowers was established later in 1986, originally having its base at Manoel Island and eventually moving to the Ta’ Qali Artisan Village in 2000. Two of the company’s glass blowing signature features are the unique red colour which has proven to be timeless, as well as the use of 22ct gold leaf and foils of silver leaf. Today, Phoenician Glass has evolved two other techniques: fused glass and glass jewellery.
As part of its fused glass collection, the company has in more recent years added personalised gifts and trophies as well as corporate mementos, house names, and house numbers. It has also been entrusted with the production of customised glass wall art whereby clients have come up with unique designs which resident craftsmen have replicated in glass.
Mdina Glass, Phoenician Glass Blowers and Valletta Glass can be contacted via e-mail on onlinesales@mdinaglass.com.mt, gro018@hotmail.com and info@vallettaglass.com respectively, or by following or contacting them via Facebook.
The Malta Crafts Foundation