Red Dog Glass Design: Turning abstract art into high-end glass designs

Passionate about making contemporary abstract art accessible through practical and durable glass designs, Red Dog Glass Design was founded by artist Sally Coulden. Their exciting contemporary art glass features, panels and splashbacks provide head-turning focal points for residential and commercial spaces. Before starting Red Dog Glass design Sally’s varied and interesting career took her from the board room to art school.

Can you take us back to the beginnings and tell us more about how & why Red Dog was started?

Prior to starting Red Dog Glass Design, I was already working as an established contemporary artist and regularly exhibiting my work in galleries. In 2017, I exhibited two large, vibrant paintings that I had created on Perspex, which were suspended from the ceiling of the gallery. During a private viewing, I overhead a guest whisper to her friend, “That would look interesting in a kitchen”. Boom! In that small moment, Red Dog Glass Design was born.

I am passionate about making contemporary art accessible. More than just something hanging on a wall, art deserves to be a central, and purposeful, part of our everyday lives. I think that art should enrich our experiences by making it a practical part of our living spaces.

So why the Red Dog name? It’s all about the human experience of ‘home’. Tens of thousands of years ago, our ancestors started painting in caves with red pigment. A place of gathering, shelter, warmth and nourishment, red dogs were amongst the earliest symbols decorating these caves, where fires were lit and families lived together in safety. Our ethos at Red Dog takes us back to this most pure version of what home is, to remind us why kitchens always provide such a warm heart in the home and speak to our basic human longings.

Tell us about your designs – how do they come about? 

I grew up in a creative household in the wilds of Norfolk in the UK. Those early years embedded a deep-seated need for a sense of space, non-containment and infinity, which is seen in my work and how I live my life. I am inspired by coastlines and waterways and my abstract paintings often reflect the expansive skies and infinite horizons of our wild British spaces. My love of colour has been inspired by my global travels, working extensively in the tropics and having lived in Australia for many years. I paint quickly, intuitively and from the heart.

What is important to you as an artist and designer?

I am passionate about elevating everyday experiences though accessible and purposeful contemporary art. It’s about being in an environment while you relax or work that creates a sense of deep well-being and emotional contentment. I work in a collaborative partnership with our clients, so that we deliver something that is just right for them and their personality.

Known for our infectious curiosity and agile thinking, our award-winning customer service and technical expertise allows us to offer a highly focussed, bespoke design service to help clients create something as unique as their space demands.

You have had a very interesting background prior to starting Red Dog. Can you tell us a bit more about that?

I started my journey as a nurse, and was privileged to care for among many others, the sculptor Henry Moore and physicist Stephen Hawking which was amazing. From there I moved into midwifery, delivering over 400 babies, before leaving the UK to travel through the jungles of Papua New Guinea.

I then spent 8 years in Australia, where I drove across the entire country from east to west where I helped establish a clinical research unit. I followed that with a stint on a remote outback cattle property, before heading back to the UK to build a career as a clinical scientist with GlaxoSmithKline. Specialising in tropical medicines, I completed an MBA and spent time working in the developing world.

I moved to PricewaterhouseCoopers and worked globally as a management consultant, until deciding it was time to return to my love of painting. A complete change from the world of clinical studies, I swapped pharmaceuticals and driving global change transformations for art school, and the rest is history!

Can you describe the process of working with interior designers?

I always work collaboratively with interior designers, helping them create bespoke panels that are completely unique for their clients. We take the heavy-lifting out of adding the wow factor, effectively the interior designer can trust us to add something a little bit different to their client schemes. I particularly love working on the colour aspects with them.

What is your favourite project so far and why?

We recently completed a very large project at a private residence in the Lake District. I was commissioned to paint an original work of art that took in the surrounding broody lakeland hills and vast skies. The painting is over 2 metres wide and hangs in the drawing room which is in a beautiful stone converted agricultural barn. I often paint using multimedia, so the painting included found items from the environment, like sheep wool, pheasant feathers and wild grasses.

The painting was then reimagined as a large glass splashback for behind the aga in the breakfast room and we created a selection of glass coasters, the images of which were taken from sections of the original painting. It was lovely to be able to connect the renovated barn with the land that it sits in, bringing together place and purpose in a really impactful yet practical way.

Any new projects or products you can share? 

We’ve just launched our Earth Collection! From the depths of the ocean to the warmth of sun-baked clay, via the luscious greens of the forest, our new capsule collection of contemporary art glass panels, splashbacks and tiles is designed to infuse homes and workspaces with nature-inspired vibes.

Drawing inspiration from the beauty and majesty of the natural planet, the collection features a stunning array of earthy tones and patterns inspired by nature, offering a unique way to bring the outdoors inside. With their vibrant hues and intricate designs, these glass panels and splashbacks harness the soothing power of nature, while adding a touch of luxury to any space.

Featuring my original abstract artwork, this new collection evokes the fresh tones of the Atlantic Ocean, the quiet greens of the deep forest and the warming tones of the raw earth beneath us.

For more information and latest products, or for commission work please visit Red Dog Glass Design website.

Image credit: All images by Red Dog Glass Design 

Cover: Inch by Inch Collection

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