The hand blown glass, made in Great Torrington, is famous throughout the world, the factory and shop is open for most of the year. A tour of the factory provides a fascinating insight into glass making and the skills of blowing red hot molten glass. The finished fine crystal ware can be purchased from the factory shop. Molten glass, red-hot from the furnace, is transformed into fragile goblets, vases, jugs and many other kinds of lead crystal glassware, under the gaze of visitors in the viewing galleries of Dartington Glass. It takes as many as 11 glassblowers to shape an intricate piece, but even the simplest tumbler requires the labours of a team of six under the supervision of a master blower. Visitors can see all stages of the process, then view and buy the finished glassware. The Glass Centre includes a video theatre, a re-creation of an 18th century glass-making workshop and displays on the history of glass. The hand blown glass, made in Great Torrington, is famous throughout the world, the factory and shop is open for most of the year. A tour of the factory provides a fascinating insight into glass making and the skills of blowing red hot molten glass. The finished fine crystal ware can be purchased from the factory shop. The story began in the 1920's at the beautiful Dartington Hall when a wealthy American heiress and her Yorkshireman husband; Dorothy and Leonard Elmhurst founded the Dartington Hall Trust. Based at Dartington, near Totnes, South Devon, their original vision was to assist the economic regeneration of rural areas through a combination of enterprises spanning business, education, the arts and country crafts. The Dartington Hall Trust soon became a multi-faceted concern with a diverse range of interests from cheese making, carpentry, farming, Forestry and education through to the conducting of research into rural communities. During the early 1960's, it became evident to the Trust, that to the north of the county there was an ever-increasing demand for new industry due to population migration to the cities. This depopulation and the lack of employment for young people were the basis from which the idea of a glass-making factory evolved. In order to provide the expertise required for this enterprising idea, the Trust recruited the first Managing Director, Eskil Vilhemson, from a Swedish Glass manufacturer, who in turn recruited a team of Scandinavian glass blowers and brought them to Devon. The factory was officially opened in June 1967 when it employed just 35 people. Over the following years, glass blowing skills were taught to English craftsmen, working originally to Scandinavian designs and later to the work of British designers. Many of the original glass blowers remained in Torrington and have been a key strength over the years in developing Dartington Crystal into the leading name in English crystal. There's so much to see and do at Dartington Crsystal, with fun for all the family.
Dartington Glass - Molten glass, red-hot from the furnace, is transformed into fragile goblets, vases, jugs and many other kinds of lead crystal glassware, under the gaze of visitors in the viewing galleries of Dartington Glass. It takes as many as 11 glassblowers to shape an intricate piece, but even the simplest tumbler requires the labours of a team of six under the supervision of a master blower. Visitors can see all stages of the process, then view and buy the finished glassware. The Glass Centre includes a video theatre, a re-creation of an 18th century glass-making workshop and displays on the history of glass.
www.dartington.co.uk Dartington Crystal Visitor Centre
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