Using a Centuries-Old Glass Technique, an Artist Creates Intricate Invertebrates

In Nikita Drachuk’s hands, glass takes on undulating, delicate, and refined forms. Glass Symphony, a family-owned glassblowing studio in Ukraine, has been in operation for three generations, and the artist is the creative power behind it. Drachuk creates elaborate figurines using a method called lampwork, in which the craftsman manipulates the glass with a small torch.

Rather of vases and bowls, Drachuk and her studio take on some of the world’s most complicated species. For example, her octopuses capture the aquatic organism and its eight sinuous tentacles in a range of natural postures. These cephalopods, which are brightly colored in reds and blues, appear as if they could slither off the table—or even across your skin.

Glass Symphony, on the other hand, creates a magnificent collection of spider sculptures. In these small works of art, eight-legged spiders with long, lanky legs appear stuck in the middle of a terrifying crawl. The mix and match of diverse colors emphasizes the delicate proportions of these statuettes, with mottled blues and greens covering the legs and abdomens in stunning visual displays.

Glass Symphony’s Etsy shop sells available glass art, and you can stay up to current by following them on Instagram.