From flawed glass to cheerful children's drawings: Steinfort Glas in Bouwurk

In the Keuken (Kitchen) of Bouwurk, cheerful children’s drawings shine on the windows. More than a hundred Frisian children drew the view they dream of. Steinfort Glas immortalised their colourful fantasy worlds on glass with a production flaw. Owner-director Gerlof Reijneker talks about how this colourful whole came together, and how essential mienskip, collaboration and enterprise are for Fryslân.

Children bring colour to Bouwurk

Steinfort Glas from Frjentsjer processes glass for all kinds of uses. “Not the standard windows you see in houses. But everything from bus shelters to balustrades, and from screen panels to shower doors. The collaboration with Arcadia and Bouwurk started after contact with Jan van Erve, Head of Development and Commercial Partnerships, and Immie Jonkman, Managing Director. They needed coloured glass for Bouwurk, which wasn’t available anywhere else. I said: ‘We can’t supply coloured glass, but we can apply a print to transparent glass.’ They and Bouwurk’s design studio Overtreders W actually loved that, and this possibility gave them a new idea: using children’s drawings.” More than a hundred children from Frisian primary schools were asked to draw the view they dream of. Overtreders W combined those drawings into one large landscape.

A second life for flawed glass

The glass Steinfort Glas used for this had a production flaw, in keeping with Bouwurk’s philosophy of working with as much reused, circular material as possible. “Glass is made from sand, which melts into a glass emulsion in a large, heated bath. That’s poured out over a tin bath to form glass sheets. We buy those from a few well-known brands. Sometimes air bubbles or other production flaws appear in that glass. Having such ‘flawed’ glass returned is expensive, so these sheets would normally be destroyed and recycled. But when we asked if we could use it for Bouwurk, the manufacturer was happy to say yes.”

Making it together

The production process for this special glass involved working together with Reinder Bakker of Overtreders W, Bouwurk’s design studio. “Suddenly having someone new in your production process can sometimes be tricky. But Reinder and his team were very constructive. They came here, talked with our DTP colleagues, ran tests, checked colours. Based on that, they got to work digitising the drawings. They had to deliver exactly the right files, with the drawings fitted per pane and spread across multiple panes. Quite a challenge. But in the end, it worked out. After that, we used a special technique: enamelling. That’s where colour pigment melts into the glass, similar to porcelain. In the end, it went perfectly.”

A factory full of cheerfulness 

“Overtreders W and Arcadia were really enthusiastic about the end result. It always makes us happy when the client is happy. But we also loved the process and result ourselves. We’re used to making prints here, we also make things like city maps and fake stained glass, for example. But this was different. It really stood out in terms of colour and pattern. You’d see big frames with children’s drawings moving through the factory. That gave everyone a cheerful feeling. It was hard work, and colleagues had to work overtime on a Saturday to get it finished. But the result made up for a lot. We got a lot of compliments from people who saw it in Bouwurk.” The glass was installed in the Keuken of Bouwurk.

The legacy of 2018

As an entrepreneur, Gerlof thinks it’s important to contribute to the legacy of the Capital of Culture year. “2018 meant a lot to us, I think even more than we actually realise. It brought visibility, pride and momentum. It made Fryslân more of a brand we can be proud of. 2018 was a huge advert for our province. That reserved, modest streak has faded a bit. People who never used to care about Fryslân now say: ‘So much is happening there!’ That feeling is valuable.”

“Bouwurk definitely had a drawing power, with all kinds of themes, talks and activities. The impact is hard to measure, but my gut feeling is that we got the most out of it. There was a lot of buzz. I thought it was a shame it lasted such a short time, for me it could easily have stayed up another month. But I also understand: short is powerful. Otherwise it fizzles out. I do notice that the Capital of Culture year in 2018 was felt very widely, it was really in Fryslân’s bloodstream. I think there are still challenges for Arcadia there, to really mobilise the whole province. But it would be great if initiatives like this keep existing, maybe something new again in a few years. Repetition is the strength here too. We’re constantly working on setting up something like Arcadia. It’s important to keep building momentum and pride together.”

Mienskip and enterprise in Fryslân

According to Gerlof, that ‘togetherness’ matters a lot. He sees that the Frisian mienskip is held in extremely high regard, both by Frisians and non-Frisians. “As chair of Club Diplomatique Fryslân at the time, I initiated and came up with Friesland Doet, a project where young people explained why they stay in Fryslân, come back, or move away. The common thread was mienskip, connection. Not just Frisians, but people from elsewhere too recognise that as a value. Honestly, that importance surprised us, because we hadn’t explicitly asked about it or expected it. But it was the common thread in every interview anyway. So mienskip is crucial.”

Steinfort Glas was one of Arcadia’s many donors and partners. But Gerlof thinks a large part of Fryslân’s enterprise still stays under the radar. “You see that it’s often the same companies and people taking part in initiatives like this. That could be broader, more diverse. There are so many great companies in Fryslân still flying under the radar. They deserve a stage too. Fryslân is bigger than you think.” Another important reason to put a spotlight on all of Fryslân’s enterprise is that it’s good for employment and the job market. “The younger generation often doesn’t know what’s possible here. A lot of people think: there’s no work in Fryslân. While there are so many interesting companies, including in high-tech and engineering. That deserves a lot more promotion. It’s not just two cows and a sheep around here.”