The sculpture exhibited at the PAD London fair is a big scale glass sculpture by the Finnish designer and architect Ilkka Suppanen (born 1968) and part of a series of different unique sculptures, displaying broken glass as it’s main theme. The unique texture of this delicate glass piece, created in Murano, reminds the viewer of melting ice or lace. The piece is at once both fragile and powerful, displaying bold innovation while simultaneously referring to the noble Nordic design tradition of art glass. By employing a technique that emphasizes experimentalism and craftsmanship, Ilkka Suppanen manages to create a new and yet timeless piece of glass art.

The themes of Ilkka Suppanen’s glass sculptures, made in Claudio Tiozzo’s glass studio, arise from the circulation of material. Ilkka Suppanen is interested in how glass as a material remains clean and reusable; glass it is never ultimately broken, as it can be reintegrated and reformed again and again. Additionally, the different states of water inspired the artist while creating these pieces.

Ilkka Suppanen studied architecture at Helsinki University of Technology, and Interior and Furniture Design at the University of Art and Design Helsinki. He completed his studies at Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam in 1992. In 1995 he found Studio Suppanen, which is internationally renowned. In 1997 Suppanen established the award winning Snowcrash designer collective together with three colleagues. In 2000 Suppanen was awarded Design Forum’s Young Designer of the Year prize together with Harri Koskinen. In recent years, Suppanen has won several domestic and international awards. His works have been showcased in many international exhibits, such as the Venice Architecture Biennale and in the MoMa in New York.