Connected by Glass: August’s PechaKucha Night Brings Glassmakers’ Stories Back to Liberec

Ten guests, ten different perspectives on one shared material. On Tuesday, 25 August, PechaKucha Night Liberec Vol. 21 will introduce audiences at the Vratislavice 101010 Cultural Centre to creators who have built their professional lives around glass.

PechaKucha Night, subtitled Connected by Glass, will become part of Crystal Valley Week for the fifth time. From 24 to 29 August, the Czech Republic’s largest festival of glass, jewellery and costume jewellery will transform Liberec into a city of exhibitions, workshops and live craftsmanship. This year’s theme, Connecting Cultures, will present glass as a medium capable of connecting countries, cultures and different perspectives on artistic creation.

Each speaker’s presentation follows the traditional format of 20 images shown for 20 seconds each. They therefore have just six minutes and forty seconds to fit in their story, their work, their successes and the mishaps that usually remain hidden behind the glass. The audience will also have an opportunity to ask questions.

“PechaKucha Night is one of the events that adds another dimension to the festival. Rather than primarily seeing art objects and installations, the audience encounters the person behind them. They discover how the artist thinks and the stories behind their work,” says Květa Vinklátová, Deputy Governor of the Liberec Region for Culture and Tourism.

The event is organised by the PechaKucha Night Liberec association and the Regional Development Agency, in cooperation with the Liberec Region.

Africa, the oldest glassmaking school and contemporary design

The speakers will include Emil Kováč, who has worked for glass studios around the world, helped establish several studios in South Africa and taught design at a university in Pretoria. His work will also be featured during Crystal Valley Week in the BohemiAfrika 4.0 exhibition. Wesley Neal Rasko will likewise speak about his far-reaching journeys in pursuit of glass. Originally from Canada, he moved to the Czech Republic in the late 1990s. He combines fused and sheet glass with optical crystal and natural materials to create striking spatial installations.

Jakub Jelínek, director of the glassmaking school in Kamenický Šenov, will commemorate an important anniversary: the institution celebrates 170 years since its foundation this year. He will present both the history and the present day of a school that has educated generations of artists across a wide range of glassmaking disciplines.

Kateřina Handlová will present her work in lighting and glass design. Alongside her own projects, she works for the Bomma and Rückl brands. Olga Staňková will focus on blown and hand-painted glass, a field she has pursued for many years through her work in the Czech Republic and abroad. The trio will be completed by Magdalena Kracík Štorkánová, the creator of monumental architectural mosaics, who also specialises in the documentation, conservation and restoration of historic mosaics.

A family background in glassmaking connects two more PechaKucha Night speakers. Ondřej Novotný works at the Novotný Glass factory in Nový Bor, while his own work is defined by purity and minimalism. David Valner grew up in a glassmaking family and founded his own studio, where he creates both functional pieces and free-standing art objects. His work is characterised by a fondness for experimenting with technologies and form.

The list of announced speakers concludes with Lukáš Jabůrek, who rose to the prestigious position of artistic director during his eleven years at the Moser glassworks and played a significant role in shaping its contemporary output. He now runs his own studio and will also be represented during Crystal Valley Week in the exhibition Nature in Glass, Glass in Nature at the Liberec Botanical Garden. The stage will also welcome a representative of the Mjölk architecture studio, which has long been associated with PechaKucha Night Liberec.

PechaKucha Night Liberec Vol. 21, Connected by Glass, will begin at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, 25 August 2026, at the Vratislavice 101010 Cultural Centre. Tickets priced at CZK 290 are available through the eVstupenka ticketing portal.