Glass and printmaking collide in Sophie Layton’s unique process

London-based artist Sophie Layton has all the natural sensibilities of a photographer, displaying an innate understanding of light, composition and positive/negative space as she guides me through the body of work that she is creating for her debut at Collect art fair in her Brixton printmaking studio. The daughter of British glassblowing legend Peter Layton, she has eschewed following in his footsteps – until now.

Her trajectory to glass hasn’t been a straightforward one. She graduated from Brighton University in 2009, where she obtained a Fine Art Printmaking degree. During her third year of university she discovered monoprinting, in which an image can only be made once, unlike most forms of printmaking. ‘Much like glassblowing, you’re working hard to create just one piece,’ she says of the process.

Layton joined the team at London Glassblowing – the Bermondsey-based studio founded by her father – in autumn of 2019, where she’s been working in the gallery as well as slowly developing her ideas in glass. A new body of work for Collect sees her translating her prints into molten form, initiating an intriguing dialogue between printmaking and glassmaking.

The artist begins by creating a monoprint, a labour-intensive process involving rollers and an etching press to build up layers of richly coloured pigment on paper. She then gives the artwork to an expert technician at the London Glassblowing studio, who renders a glass version of the print.

Layton’s final touch comes in the form of intricate, hand-painted decorations, which echo the motifs in the original prints. She uses buttercut (a type of adhesive vinyl) and a scalpel to create stencils with which to apply the enamel paint. The glass is then fired again for the final time, fusing the enamel paint to the artwork. ‘The glass distorts and magnifies the enamel as you move around the work,’ she adds.

Her influences are eclectic as her process; she draws on everything from photography to the work of glass artist Dale Chihuly and ikebana, the Japanese art of flower-arranging. Most of all, she’s intrigued by how glass and printmaking can come together in unexpected ways. ‘You have these two completely different ways of working – in 2D and in 3D – and they completely inform each other,’ she says, enthused by the possibilities. ‘Printmaking helps me crystallise my thoughts for glassblowing. It’s like holding two mirrors up to each other.’

Collect 2021 will take place online on Artsy.net from 26 February, with works on view and commissions available until 24 March. Over the coming weeks, we’re meeting the makers making their debut at the fair – follow the pre-fair action online and on Instagram at @collectartfair. Sophie Layton will be giving a talk with her husband and fellow London Glassblowing artist, Tim Rawlinson, on 25 February at 7pm (GMT) – sign up here.