Václav Cigler

"I use glass as a mediator for observation and meditation," says Václav Cigler. From 1965 to 1979 this approach guided his teaching as head of the department of architectural glass that he had established at Bratislava art academy. Cigler has not only influenced countless students in his native country; his stylistic example has also affected generations of glass artists abroad. Born in Vsetín in 1929, he underwent the classic Czechoslovakian training. After attending the glass school in Nový Bor, he transferred to the School of Applied Art in Prague, where he studied under Josef Kaplický from 1951 to 1957. Today he works as an independent artist in Prague. Cigler's work and installations have been displayed in Europe, North America and Asia. His work is included in numerous prominent collections, including Corning Museum of Glass in Corning, New York; Glasmuseet Ebeltoft in Ebeltoft, Denmark; Kunstsammlungen der Veste Coburg in Cobug, Germany; Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, France; Slovakian National Gallery in Bratislava, Slovakia and Victoria & Albert Museum in London, England. Cigler is the recipient of numerous honors, including the 1968 Prize for Decorative Art of the Union of Czechoslovakian Fine Artists and Honorary Prize at the 1985 Zweiter Coburger Glaspreis in Coburg, Germany.