About

My inspiration

Curiosity drives me forward and have drawn me towards glass as the fascinating material it is. Glass is a non-forgiving material, which made it even more satisfying when I finally understood it. And even more so when I am able to push the limits of the material.

I work towards both learning and developing my understanding and techniques further. Wanting to understand and develop is the reason why I today work with glassblowing, lampworking and casting in glass, while also learning silver work and ceramics to expand my work.

In my designs I am inspired by the nature of Andøy, with it’s wind, sea and rough mountains. The unique nature are reflected back into my work with it’s organic shapes, made with the colors of the sea and the mountains surrounding me.

Bio

Hanna Karlsen (b. 1993) has been living and developing her artistic voice at Andøy since 2021, while also building and establishing her business Øya glass studio. Before that she attended Kragerø Kunstskole (2016-2017), where she discovered her true passion: Glassblowing.

She apprenticed at Stavanger glassblåseri (2017-2020), and after finishing her apprenticeship, she worked for Boble Glasshytte (2020) for a short year before starting her own business at Andøy.

Hanna Karlsen are currently working in her own workshop at Andøy where her main goal is to work with local and recycled resources as much as possible. While also working for Store norske leksikon as a subject specialist on glass production. She is at the moment developing collections in locally sourced glass, testing out local clay and experimenting with glass chemically to find new ways of working.