About Keith Grinter
Keith Grinter MA&D, BFA, BBS, NDH
Keith runs the Grinter Glass studio in Whangarei, where his focus is on developing his glass blowing skills, particularly the shard pick-up technique. He works in a range of media including painted and blown glass, painting and sculpture. His paintings on canvas and glass are often based on blind contour drawings made while walking. The concept of drawing while walking was developed for his Master's degree as a means to investigate the everyday. Keith exhibits in throughout New Zealand including Te Papa, Pataka and Sarjeant galleries. He was the winner of the 2015 Westpac Northland Business Excellence Awards – Creative Northland Excellence in Arts Business Award. Two of his painted and blown works have been purchased by Sir James Wallace for the Wallace collection. Keith won The Doyle and Anne Robinson Glass prizes when he was at art school and been a finalist in the Australasian Ranamok glass prize. In 2011 he received a Merit Award for his painting
Procession at the Carey Smith Awards at the Whanganui Arts Review. He has received a number of awards and prizes at the Auckland A&P show and recently won the Roco Art Award
at the Ashburton Art Society exhibition.
He taught at the Quay School of Arts, UCOL, Whanganui for 3 years, where he completed a BFA in 2007. He was awarded a Masters of Art and Design (First Class) from AUT University in 2010.
He mentored distance students for The Learning Connexion from 2011 to 2017
A new Venture
On 16th September 2013 I started work in my own glass blowing studio in Whangarei. I had been discussing moving to Whangarei and working with Keith Mahy when he died unexpectedly. A few weeks later I was offered the opportunity of purchasing the studio by Shona Firman. With the help of Garry Nash I started the furnace on Tuesday 17 and spent the next two days warming it up slowly until it was ready to add batch to make glass. During the week I made my first glass batch from the raw chemicals following Keith Mahy's old recipe. On Saturday 21st September I spent from 8am to 3.30 blowing glass in my own studio. Thanks to Shona Firman and Garry Nash for their kind support in getting started in my own studio.
Since then I have changed to using Spectrum Premium Nuggets to make glass that is much easier to blow. I have learnt heaps from Rebecca and Jan who have been rented the studio regularly. Thanks to all those other glass artists who have given me advice on technical issues concerning running the studio and working out ways to manage solo glass blowing.
My glass blowing skills are improving but every new shape and technique is a challenge that takes a while to master. My focus is on using the shard technique, which Keith Mahy used, to create a unique line of painterly glass art. I find this technique fits well with my other large scale painted glass work and my fascination with modernist painting.