Finding a Small Glass of “Heven” in Atlanta
At New York Fashion Week last month, Coperni debuted their collaboration with glass homeware brand Heven. It is a glass purse in the silhouette of their popular swipe bag. The bag was seen on Doja Cat and Tinashe at the Grammy’s in three variations. It was also seen on Kylie Jenner’s Instagram.
Heven, started by Breanna Box and Peter Dupont in the height of the pandemic, is a glass homeware brand started from the couple’s recent interest in glass blowing. Box first attempted glassblowing at the start of the pandemic at a U.K. based studio, The Glass Hub. She then convinced Dupont to try at the same studio and the two quickly became regulars, making odd items and pieces for their home. The studio and instructors encouraged a level of playfulness and freedom in their work. In the chaos that is the pandemic, small spaces for creativity grow more and more important for communities to have. A small heaven for those who need it.
A glass studio in Atlanta, Ga has been that space for their own community for a long time. Janke Studios, in the historic Martin Luther King Jr. district of the city has been around for years. Started by Matt and Kim Janke, the studio is a place of instruction and work for professionals who need the open-air space.
Matt Janke has been working with glass and other materials since college. Janke first learned of glassblowing in college when taking an elective class. The class introduced him to several materials: metals, glass, and textiles. He then went on to get a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in jewelry metals and a minor in glassblowing. Glassblowing took him across the country to take part in the community each city had. He took commissions and did custom work right out the door. “I sold work even as an undergrad,” Janke says. “I always had to make a living.”
When he and Kim decided to settle in Atlanta, they had no previous plans to open the studio. Glassblowing was something that Janke just had to do and to that, he needed the equipment. Before his wife knew it, he had filled their basement with everything needed to have a fully functioning glass studio. This is what pushed them to open the studio.
Atlanta, unlike other cities Janke had been to, did not have a community that worked with this material and so he had to work from scratch to gain interest in what he was doing. With the limited resources he had and the word of mouth from friends, the studio gained traction and customers came.
Janke Studios has been going strong for 20 years and made itself a permanent place in the city of Atlanta. A heaven for the creative people who want to explore in unfamiliar places and mediums.
You can book your spot at Jankestudios.com
