Penza, 6 May 2014. PenzaNews. The fifth international workshop on glassworks and glass sculpture organized by the Penza region government, the regional Department of Culture and Archives and “Center of cluster development,” JSC, began its work in the town of Nikolsk on Monday, April 5.

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More than 20 glassworks masters from France, Latvia, Turkey, Luxembourg, Czech Republic, Ukraine, Moscow and Saint-Petersburg, as well as glassworks cluster representatives from Penza and Nikolsk, are taking part in the workshop.

According to Yuri Krivov, chairman of Penza region government, it is very symbolic to see that the date of the workshop coincided with such notable dates as the 250th anniversary of glassworks foundation in Nikolsk region, the 225th anniversary of the local glass collection, and the 60th anniversary of the town of Nikolsk.

As said Alexander Fokin, Distinguished Artist of the Russian Federation, Associate Fellow of the Russian Academy of Arts and the man who stood behind the idea of the workshop, the main feature of the milestone gathering will be the creation of six large glass sculptures that will be installed under the open sky.

He added that a number of sculptures will be monitored via video surveillance, while some of them will be made using thick glass and silicone that will absorb potential shocks.

As Alexander Fokin told to agency “PenzaNews,” the short-term plans of the local glassworks cluster include the foundation of the museum of modern glass sculptures in Nikolsk. Currently, the collection of the existing glassworks museum is completely full, and it has no reserve stocks.

“The foundation of the modern glass sculptures would be an additional incentive to ensure that our workshop continues to work during the futher years,” said the agency interlocutor.