Leo Duval entered the art world after studying Furniture design at Middlesex University. His name has become synonymous with contemporary glass sculpture. Renowned in Great Britain and beyond for his advocacy and passionate love for the glass medium, Leo’s resolute mission is to support and elevate the development of glass art.
He founded Plateaux Gallery in 1996, specializing in the exhibition and sale of contemporary applied art with studio glass being a dominant feature. The gallery represents many internationally acclaimed glass artists such as Jon Kuhn with particular emphasis on Eastern European glass featuring leading-edge sculptures by Vladimir Zbynovsky, Oliver Lesso, Tomas Hlavicka, and Peter Botos, to name a few.
Insight
“I think glass is the most expressive artistic medium. It has an extra dimension that defies other media. Artists using optical glass can create illusions of infinite space, animated to its best effect by the viewer whilst moving around the glass sculpture.
My passion for the glass medium was initiated by an insignificant small advertisement announcing a glass exhibition at the Slovak Embassy in London back in 1997. I went along not expecting much as there were no images or anything indicative of what was to be seen. I entered the large hall….and lo and behold! I had goose pimples all over!! Never had I seen such magnificence in one room! I never imagined that glass could be so intriguing and so powerful in its language. All I was seeing was executed perfection, from the geometric work of Oliver Lesso to the natural stones of Vladimir Zbynovsky. That was the day I fell in love with glass.
The Slovak Embassy were actively looking for a commercial gallery to host the collection. Fate had brought me to this exhibition! So, hand in hand with fate, I managed to host the same exhibition in my gallery that year. It turned out to be the best selling exhibition of the year and to great public acclaim".
The worldwide collective of artists who work with glass are busy building a language of expression with unique shapes, colour, and incident light which repeatedly lead the viewer to a spectacular experience by giving the glass amazing aesthetic appeal.
“These qualities of excellence must be promoted by the likes of us gallery owners. To showcase the beauty of these works to the public and make them aware; to lead them to appreciate its special qualities; qualities that no other medium can begin to touch!”