Commissions

Alx Creations is able to work with a range of clients to provide bespoke glass art for residential, public and commercial projects. Commissions are often initiated through photographs of specific places, items or memories that the client wishes to encapsulate in glass. Clients will then be encouraged to discuss with us their own ideas about what they might prefer.

Commissioned work ranges from bespoke sculptural pieces, interior glass work and public art to wall art and personalised gifts . From there we are able to design a completely individual piece.

We consult with the clients on a regular basis, to establish an understanding of the clients taste and expectations, to ensure that the final work is delivered on time and to the client’s approval.

Alx Creations public art commissions:

Commemorative Flame, Tatton Park – 2014

A commemorative flame sculpture for The Cheshire East Council in Tatton Park to commemorate the centenary of the First World War. The work was installed in Tatton outside the mansion and  lit by George Osbourne on the 4th August in an opening ceremony to commemerate the start of the Great War. The piece remained in Tatton for the duration of the centenary. Alex also completed glass interpretation board for the piece and is now working to re-house the glass panels throughout Cheshire East.

Eternal Memories, Boston – 2015

Eternal Memories  was a public water sculpture for Boston Crematorium. The piece was inspired by a series of workshops and public consultations run by Alx Creations in Boston along with archive research and photography. The sculpture aims to reflect the diverse history of Boston and its inhabitants. The piece comprised a number of glass panels each depicting the history of Boston from its origins as a Port to modern day. During the design process I established several different community engagement activities. These includied a day with the local high school, a public arts workshop and a community consultation event, which directly influenced the contents of each panel. The piece offers visitors a space for quiet contemplation and reflection. Through the water they will catch glimpses of memories both recent a past

Wheel – Saltbrook Heritage Trail, Hatton – 2018

In 2018 I was commissioned to create a sculptural piece for Saltbrook Heritage Trail in Hatton.  They wanted a piece for their sculpture garden inspired by the local heritage and industries of the area. Hatton had a long history in the glasswork, locomotive and farming industry as well as an ongoing connection with Nestle. I wanted to incorporate all these industries in my piece through fused glass, poetry and photography.

As part of the process I visited local residents at their homes and conducted interviews. I also worked on a two-day project with the local primary school creating images and poems inspired by the locomotive industry. At the end of the sessions the children assembled a temporary cardboard locomotive within the school playground. In the later stages I worked will local young people with creative skills enabling them to have a direct input into the final piece by assisting with the creation of the kiln carved glass panels.

Kirkham Heritage Trail – 2021

https://kirkhamtreasures.co.uk/artists-blog/
In 2021 I was commissioned as part of the Kirkham Treasures project to create a heritage trail throughout the town that encapsulated the history of Kirkham and encouraged local residents to engage with and further explore the history of their local area. This was predominantly a community engagement project. Over the course of 6 months I worked with schools, care homes, adults groups, shop owners, churches, families and elderly residents engaging them in a wide range of arts workshops both in person and virtually to help them to better understand and connect with the town. From these workshops I produced a collaborative historical map of the town, a series of peephole images to attach to railings, a permanent wood and Perspex peephole box trail a series of glass artworks with the local high school and an interactive QR code talking wall installation. We also held an opening event where residents could partake in a quest to discover the history of Kirkham.

River Reflections, Gargrave – 2022

In 2022 I was commissioned to work with the Aire Rivers Trust on a new public art piece for Gargrave as part of their developing the natural Aire project. Part of the aim of the project is to celebrate the retun of the Atlantic Salmon to the Aire.
For almost 200 years the Atlantic Salmon had been a creature of legend in the river after severe pollution, sewage and the building of weirs meant they were unable to return to their breeding grounds. Over the last 40 years huge efforts have been made to clean up the river and build fish passes. Finally the Atlantic Salmon is able to begin returning to its ancestral home.

I had a busy few months working with locals to develop the piece. I began by running a public consultation with locals offering them an opportunity to become involved in the development of the piece and share their own memories of the river. I then spent a day working with children from Gargrave Primary School. The children had the opportunity to view a river sample to see what species live within their river and learn all about the story of the Atlantic salmon. We shared the story of Sylvester the Salmon and the children created their own visual poems inspired by their memories and connections of the river and the wildlife within. I also ran a design and development session mapping out the students memories and visions for the artwork. A lot of the children were keen on the concept of fish and bubbles and wanted to see fish shaped sculptures and be able to look at the piece from different angles and heights. They wanted to see a 3D piece that celebrated other wildlife too.
The information gathered from the primary school group and all the feedback from residents of Gargrave was passed on to the young people at Skipton Academy who then worked on a series of designs inspired by the idea of fish and bubbles and other suggestions such as a circle of life and viewing circles . They worked together with myself to come up with a series of designs and then narrow down to one central idea for the  metalwork that I could then refine. They also began work on collaborative drawings for the glasswork.

The final work of art combines the memories, stories, ideas, drawing and words of the local community to create a piece that truly celebrates Gargrave’s river heritage and the return of wildlife to the river Aire.

Other Commissions:

Alx Creations have also worked on a number of smaller bespoke glass art commissions. These include windows and balustrades, garden sculptures, local heritage pieces, indoor artworks and show pieces.

To commission a piece please email your ideas or images to: info@alxcreations.com