The John Ditchfield Collector Club

I began my apprenticeship in glassmaking at the Venetian Glass Factory in Blackpool in the 1960's. I worked with the Italian maestro Franco Toffolo for several years learning the techniques of the Venetian style of glassmaking. One day I visited the Haworth Art Gallery in Accrington where I discovered the Tiffany Collection. I was fascinated by the colours and techniques used by the Tiffany Company and wondered as I was using the same basic material i.e. molten coloured glass, whether it would be possible to achieve similar effects. I tried unsuccessfully to find reading matter that could help me with my challenge.

I discovered that the majority of the books were written by glass collectors rather than by glassmakers and were not technical enough - historically glassmakers generally tended to keep their techniques to themselves. Knowing nothing about chemistry I began experimenting like a mad scientist at midnight with all sorts of chemicals for a period of about six years. During this period I was able to achieve some very interesting results, some crude some stunning. But the chemicals I was using and believe Tiffany and Loetz used were extremely toxic.

I travelled to Holland to meet a well known Dutch glass designer called Andre Copier who was in his eighties, but still active and designing glass. He used to work for the Leerdam Glass Factory which during the 1920's produced a range of gold iridescent glass ware and hoped he would be able to help me on this quest to improve the iridesecense I had achieved so far. Sadly, Copier was unable to help. However, I stayed on in Holland and worked with Copier's younger colleague Willem Heesen who had a small glass studio. Whilst working there I discovered they sometimes applied a chemical on the glass whilst still moltent, which produced an interesting iridescense.

In my lunchtimes and in the evening I experimented with the chemical with some very interesting results without fear of poisoning myself. After leaving Willem Heesen's studio I had just enough money to hire a studio in Essen, Germany, in November 1980. I had no idea what I was going to produce before arriving there. I had always, in the Italian way, worked with a team of assistants. This time I was going to be working totally by myself which would determine what I would be able to make.

My need to earn money gave me the idea to make shapes that people would recognise straight away and were affordable. That was the birth of the iridescent mushrooms, apples and pears which I made for the German public visiting the studio to buy as Christmas presents. In 1982 I returned to England and set up Glasform with my business partner at the time Donald Sidebottom. In around 1985 I approached a silversmith, David Howard, to design a range of silver which could be put on to the glass. This was the birth of the glass and silver range which includes the lily trail discs.

I have tried to safeguard my designs and style along with my iridising techniques learned over many years. Unfortunatley , an ex-employee of mine passed these hard learned techniques and designs to other glassmakers who now copy and live off the Ditchfield and Glasform names and products. I continue to strive to improve the iridesecense of the glass and develop new products which, unfortunately, I know only too well will be copied by glassmakers who do not appear to have any ideas of their own .I feel there is a difference in being inspired by something and just simply copying it.

I wish to thank all the Ditchfield and Glasform collectors for their support and I offer a personal invitation to visit the studio at Singleton.