LifeConnect relocated and opened its doors as a psychology practice in 1996 in North Sydney, we shared the building with a beautiful gallery. The gallery displayed works of art, craftwork and paintings by famous Australian artists. We admired these works, as did the visitors to our practice. When the gallery closed, it was a loss. With encouragement we felt motivated to refresh the space once more with art from Australian Glass Artists.

At the heart of our vision is the knowledge that all psychological work requires some transformation. Many of the glass works we now have on display have taken days, weeks and sometimes months from the inspiration of the idea to the crafting of the object. These two processes of transformation compliment and support one another. Both processes need fire – whether the fire of enthusiasm for change or the fire of the glass artists’ “hot shop” of kilns and furnaces.

Why Australian Glass?

Over the past decade, unnoticed by most of us, Australian Glass has been making an impact internationally. Margot Osborne, who is a critic and writer, makes the following comments:

“Contemporary glass is flourishing in Australia. The latter half of the 1990s saw the emergence of a new generation of accomplished practitioners, and an unprecedented wave of international interest in Australian studio glass.

The past decade has seen Australian glass artists receive a string of significant awards……………….There are all sorts of speculative explanations for this recent emergence of Australian glass on the world stage. The most evident is that a point of critical mass has been reached. A significant number of Australian glass artists have become very good at what they do. They are creating unique, beautiful and technically accomplished forms in glass. They are achieving recognition amongst their professional peers in the global community, winning international awards, and generating widespread demand for their work from the collectors of studio glass, both in the private and public sector.

Australian glass is now represented in the collections of art museums throughout America, Europe and Japan. The one mystery is that most of this success has been barely noticed in Australia."

Margot Osborne “Australian Glass Today, Wakefield Press 2005"

LifeConnect Gallery displays glass for sale and features exhibition work. We hope you will notice its beauty, and like us feel it deserves to be seen in our cities. So often we stand back from art displayed in galleries as if the artwork were something aloof and beyond our reach. Many of the pieces we display are not only beautiful; they are also useful utensils such as wine and drinking glasses. We want to make the glass accessible to you, and be part of your everyday life.

Open to public 9am to 5pm weekdays or by appointment.