Talk to the Contemporary Glass Society with the emphasis of Professionalism
What was life like in a small community on the edge of the Black Country during the reign of Queen Victoria, a period of great Industrial progress and social advancement.
Thomas and George Woodall were ordinary working men, with artistic talents which they employed to carve cameo; a glass art form that had become incredibly popular and fashionable with the reproduction of the Portland Vase in 1876. John Northwood carved the blank to reproduce the lost Roman art form, blown in cobalt blue glass and overlaid with white.
The Woodall brothers were his apprentices learning the craft, one step behind their master. They went on to produce some of the finest cameo pieces known, becoming Masters of their craft with their work now in international museums and collections.
Thomas Woodall – Reminiscences
‘These reminiscences show that products of a working-class background, who seized opportunities to improve their lot, could by diligent cultivation of their talents, fulfil themselves in their chosen career, make a useful contribution to society and ultimately achieve international fame.
References
Haden, Jack H.; Artists in Cameo Glass, Incorporating Thomas Woodall’s Memoirs. The Black Country Society, 1993.
Jack H Haden, from 1933 he was a reporter for the County Express in Stourbridge. He was an acknowledged expert on the history of Stourbridge and its glass industry. He wrote several books and founded Stourbridge Historical and Archaeological Society on his demob from Army service in 1946. He also helped to establish the Stourbridge Glass Collection.
Perry, Christopher Woodall; The Cameo Glass of Thomas and George Woodall; Richard Dennis, Somerset, 2000
Christopher Woodall Perry, born in 1969 and educated in Stourbridge surrounded by glasshouse landmarks. He is the great great-grandson of George Woodall and was a member of the Friends of Broadfield House Glass Museum
MSC Forsyth Centre Galleries, Texas A & M University; and The Corning Museum of Glass, New York; have two of the best collections of Woodall Cameo Glass in the world.
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