The Client
Cheval Gloucester Park is a luxury all-apartment residential development in South Kensington, London. First opening in 1991, it underwent a major refurbishment project in 2020.
The Brief
Daedalian Glass Studios were commissioned to create a series of glass partition screens for this luxury apartment residence.
This project offered up a technical challenge as the design brief was to use traditional, hand-blown antique glass. This glass is 3mm thick and cannot be toughened, so it was required to laminate to 6mm fire-rated glass to form a fire-rated safety glass. Additionally, the 3mm thick glass would break under the pressure of a lamination kiln so a cold-pour resin was used to manufacture these panels.
The antique glass was sourced from a partner company of Daedalian Glass Studios who specialise in this traditional glass working technique. The glass first melted from soda, sand, and lime, coloured and then mouth-blown into 'balloons'. These 'balloons' are then formed into cylinders, and reheated in the oven to flatten into sheets of glass.
The Old Smithy
Carr Lane
Hambleton
Poulton-le-Fylde
Lancashire
FY6 9DW
United Kingdom