Group visits to Glass Studio, Cambridge, New Zealand
Di Tocker Glass Studio & Gallery is open to group visits by appointment. 1 - 1.5 hours is a good amount of time to spend at Di's Cambridge Studio where Di will share her passion for glass, giving an engaging talk about the processes and inspiration behind her glass practice. You can enjoy further time looking at completed glass artworks in the gallery space and take in the her delightful garden too.
Within walking distance is the newly opened Circus Eatery, so why not make a great day out for your group?
Signing off with Glass Shelf People
Di says "Repetition is important part of a glass caster's repertoire, It helps to improve skills and efficiencies but its a double edged sword as repetition can become boring as well as de-valuing the work. Value of the artwork is always on my mind. I want owners of my glass artworks to know the piece they have is unique. If there are too many out there, they will not hold value and remain unique"
Di goses on to say "Each one of my artworks is coded - I know when it was made, which kiln it was fired in and what other works I made at a similar time. Those codes are markers along my creative path and individual to each artwork"
When asked if Di stops at a certain number, she says "It isn't like that, I know when I need to move on and make way for other pieces. If I don't make 'space' in my thinking new ideas can not be realised".
To avoid disappointment, you must place orders for Shelfies by midnight Sunday 31 July 2022.
Take a look at Shelfie options here.
Email Di with your colour choice - Couple or Pair, and display method - Bench seat or Wall Box.
Cast glass highly commended at NZ Sculpture Awards
Sculptural Glass Artist Di Tocker has received one of five highly commended awards on offer at the 2022 RT Nelson Awards for Sculpture with $1000 prize money. Judge Lynne Sandri decidied to give the highly commended award to Di for both her selected artworks Submerge - Ice Melt and Submerge - Purple Fall, as she did for the winning two artworks from Lissy and Rudi Robinson Cole.
88 artworks were selected as finalists from 66 artists in all sculpture mediums.
Congratulations to Auckland artists Lissy and Rudi Robinson-Cole for winning the $15,000 Premier award with their pieces Harikoa – Aroā Nukunuku and Paki – He Taonga Tuku Iho, made from hand carved wood embellished with crocheted NZ neon wool.
‘Lissy and Rudi are clever, bold, and colourful collaborators combining two traditional practices of carving and crochet into contemporary sculpture,’ says Sandri. ‘Even the range of neon colours are theirs and each colour represents a kaitiaki of their arts practice. Their works are beacons of joy and I believe will help share and connect our culture with everyone (in homes-whare and meeting houses – whare hui). These works are traffic stoppers and I can’t stop thinking about how uplifting they are. Definitely joy spreaders and I can’t think of anything more important that we all need right now.’
View the award winners and finalists here.
Testimonial for Glass Art
We were thrilled to have the opportunity to commission Di to deliver a bespoke glass artwork for us. We wanted something to represent our life journey so far and found that Di’s Navigator series symbolised our thoughts well. Di was able to deliver us a beautiful glass piece based on this theme that delivered our message and complemented our setting.
Di’s adaptability and process were inspiring and hugely rewarding to be part of. From the very first visioning stages through to wax concepts, choice of colours then receiving the finished product, Di made sure we understood the process, her artistic boundaries, technical constraints and the time involved for each step, then she kept us engaged through each development stage.
We really enjoyed working with Di, we love our artwork and expect that future generations will also treasure it for years to come. Thanks Di.
John and Lisa O’Donoghue, Hamilton
Recent Commission from Di Tocker Glass- Navigator series
What do you do when you've been gifted a nominal amount to spend on yourself?
This happened to a recent client when leaving the firm he had given many years of service to. Wanting my client to choose something special and meaningful for himself, the company suggested he go away and have a think about what he really wanted.
Discussions with his wife lead to deciding the time was right to own a select piece of Cast Glass Artwork. Having admired glass art for many years, a search on the internet lead them to choose a piece commissioned by myself.
It has been a joy to work with these clients choosing such a special keepsake that represents so much of their joint life together and the new adventures they intend to have.
Award finalists announced for RT Nelson Sculpture Prize
The list of finalists has been announced for the 2022 RT Nelson Sculpture Awards to be held in Wellington 2-5 June.
I have 2 pieces selcted for this prestigious sculpture exhibtion featuring 68 artists and 89 artworks from throughout New Zealand.
View the full list of finalists here
My two artworks are based on these two previou smaller pieces
Vouchers now available for selected Di Tocker Glass artworks
Buy your loved one a beautiful piece of art but take out the risk factor!
Di Tocker now offers vouchers for some selected artworks. This means you can purchase your loved one a special piece of art but they can choose the colour.
The glass artwork will be made after your loved one choose their favourite colour or colour mix depending on the piece. By choosing the colour your loved one gets to take part in the process and can also visit Di Tocker's glass studio in Cambridge to collect it. (delivery is also available)
Avoid a voucher with a dollar value - the voucher is specific to an artwork.
Find out more
Select from Travellers, Headspace and Team of Two.
To purchase a voucher contact Di Tocker by phone 0210384057 or email di@dicast.co.nz
Di Tocker Glass selected for 2022 Awards for Sculpture
This email was recieved 10 February confirming my place as a finalist with 2 selcted works...
Kia ora Di,
Thank you for applying for the 2022 Richard T Nelson Awards for Sculpture. We appreciate the time and effort it takes to put an application together.
We're really excited about the range of applications that came in - a mix of contemporary and traditional styles.
Congratulations: both of your works Submerge – Ice Melt and Submerge – Purple Fall have been selected as finalists to be exhibited in the RT Nelson Awards for Sculpture Exhibition at the 2022 NZ Art Show.
Judging is never an easy task but you can feel confident your entry was reviewed thoroughly and respectfully; and often a robust conversation took place. The calibre of entries was remarkable and the diversity of work put forward has left us in absolute awe of the talent in Aotearoa. Around 80 small sculptures from artists all over NZ will form this exhibition.
Your work will be considered to receive one of 6 awards:
- Premier prize –- $15,000 (1 available)
- Highly commended - $1,000 (5 available)
The Awards for Sculpture will be exhibited within the
NZ Art Show in Wellington
Thursday June 2nd (preview) to Saturday June 4th.
"I am very grateful to have this ooportunity to showcase my artwork.
Thank you to philanthropist Richard T. Nelson!"
Richard T. Nelson is an avid art collector and appreciator. Originally from the USA, Richard has called Wellington, NZ home for past 25 years
Richard’s love of sculpture started more than 50 years ago upon visiting a small gallery in Haiti. There he came across some beautiful works by a Haitian sculptor, Ludovic Booz. He purchased 3 elegant mahogany sculptures that he admires and appreciates to this day.
Degrees from Yale and Stanford Universities followed by a successful career in Investments has enabled Richard to pursue his love of art.
His collection holds contemporary pieces from around the world including Europe, the United States, New Zealand, Australia, Haiti, Japan and Africa. His sculpture collection includes a considerable selection of smaller works, providing the inspiration for this award.
Richard appreciates the elegance and grace of sculpture, and wishes to reward technique and true craftsmanship through this award.