Master of Graal, Peter Hermansson: 

Exploring Surreal Narratives from the Psyche’s Inner Landscape

Peter Hermansson, based in Nybro, Sweden, is an internationally acclaimed master glass artist whose work bridges contemporary innovation and historical tradition. His artistry captures the essence of Swedish glassmaking, reinterpreted through the lens of his distinctive, graphically expressive graffiti-inspired style. 

A graduate of the renowned Orrefors National Glass School, Hermansson has spent over two decades refining and evolving the Swedish glass techniques of Graal and Ariel. These methods have become hallmarks of his signature style, celebrated for their intricate craftsmanship and creative depth. Central to Hermansson’s practice is storytelling, which he achieves through etched graphic illustrations on the surfaces of his glass vessels. This technique infuses each piece with a dynamic visual narrative, reinforcing the profound connection between fine art and craft.

Graal is a century-old Swedish technique that embeds narrative imagery within blown glass. Hermansson constructs a blank from multiple thin layers of colored glass, then masks and sandblasts through them to build the motif—a meticulous process that can take up to two weeks. Once reheated and blown, the imagery expands, bends, and wraps around the vessel. This layered construction allows the exterior and interior to carry entirely different colors and motifs while maintaining a remarkably thin wall. After two decades of experimentation, Hermansson continues to push Graal beyond its traditional limits, developing new tools and methods that transform the vessel into a complex, multidimensional image.

Hermansson’s journey into glassblowing started when he set foot in Pukebergs Glassworks, nestled in the Swedish city of Nybro, where he fell in love with the historical vibration. The imposing walls, the smell of propane, the radiating heat from industrial furnaces, and the stories shared by factory workers caught his imagination. Eager to learn more about glass, he enrolled in a two-year program to acquire basic glassworking skills, followed by three and a half year as an apprentice at a Swedish master glassblower’s studio. 

However, it was not until 2012, during Hermansson’s first sold-out show called Dark Was the Night, that he made the shift from music to pursue a full-time career as a glass artist. He opened his own blowing studio in 2019, 13 STUDIO, in collaboration with his friend Bjørn Friborg. The workshop is located inside the glass factory of Målerås, an area with a strong history of glass making dating back to 1740 and which earned the name of kingdom of glass.

In early 2025, Hermansson’s work was exhibited in his debut solo exhibition in the US, titled ALTER EGO, held at Method & Concept, Naples, Florida. Writes Chad Jensen, Director/Curator: “Hermansson’s work is profoundly exciting and unparalleled in the world of glass. Peter is a rare talent who seamlessly balances concept and craft, authentically finding his voice and expression through the interplay of material and process.”

With current exhibitions in Venice in Homo Faber’s An Island of Light and in New York with The Future Perfect in the exhibition USE ME, I`M FRAGILE, Hermansson has a full schedule for the remainder of this year and into the next. He’ll be exhibiting glass along with his lithographic prints at Galleri Nord in Orebro, Sweden, from November 28 through December 12, 2026. Next year, events include a solo exhibition at Traver gallery in Seattle in April; and the upcoming GAS conference, which will be held in Kosta, Sweden in June. There, Hermansson will collaborate with Raven Skyriver and work as a gaffer for his wife Kirsten Hermansson at her demo.

Says Hermansson: “I went from being a musician to learning to blow glass. It felt similar to learning a new instrument. I think the same synapses in the brain get activated when you play music and blow glass. The timing, the playing together in the band, the tonality, the groove, the swing and the beat, it all feels like a symphony.”

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