Poatina Glass Studio
The Poatina Glass Studio was officially established in 2009 with support from Arts Tasmania. Located at interim premises in Poatina village until 2012, the studio has now been relocated in the new purpose-built facility of the Alethea Mountain Retreat Arts Centre which was established with support from The Tasmanian Community Fund, The Ian Potter Foundation and the Northern Midlands Council.
A dream many years in the making and now a celebrated reality as Tasmania's premier hot glass teaching facility, the Poatina Glass Studio addresses a significant need in offering hot and kiln-formed glass studio access and tuition to the state of Tasmania.
Located in a beautiful bush setting with views of the Great Western Tiers on the edge of Poatina village, the studio is an inspiring place for beginners and professionals to undertake workshops in glass making, for artists to access specialised equipment and studio space, for school and other community groups to watch demonstrations or participate in educational workshops, and for tourists and spectators to simply enjoy the fascinating spectacle of hot glass being shaped and formed into all manner of art objects.
Facilities
The hot glass area, or 'Hotshop', boasts a 135kg pot furnace for melting glass, two medium and one large glory holes (re-heating chambers) with two accompanying workspaces or Benches which allow up to two teams to work at any time.
The kiln formed glass area or 'Kiln Room' boasts a large architectural glass fusing and slumping kiln with an internal bed size of 2.4 x 1.2 metres, another large top-opening kiln suitable for large slumping and fusion projects, plus a range of smaller kilns for slumped, fused, or cast glass techniques.
The cold-working (cutting, grinding and polishing) area has a wide range of equipment including flat bed grinders, wet-belt linisher, diamond saw and a glass lathe for diamond wheels.
All areas and equipment are available to hire, and artists may also rent a permanent workspace in the building in which to base their studio work. Tools are also available for hire and a limited range of glass colours for blowing and kiln forming are available for purchase.
The Alethea Mountain Retreat Arts Centre in which the studio is located also offers a large multi-purpose room which is also available for short-term rental for large projects or exhibitions, or for running workshops or other events.
For more information on the studio's facilities or hire rates, please get in touch through the "Contact Us" tab above, or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.