Calle San Marcos, 8 Bj – 34001 Palencia
The master Carlos Laborda founded Vidrieras Laborda in 1999.
The works they carry out are mainly the following:
Leaded stained glass and Tiffany technique. Manufacture and restoration of leaded stained glass windows with the Tiffany technique following the artisanal processes. The design process is very important in… order to obtain the final product as desired. The designs are carried out with the aid of a computer with specific professional design programmes. These technological advances enable them to try textures and colours of digitized glass, thus, letting the client have a clear vision from the very first moment of how his stained glass windows will finally look. From then on, all the work they carry out in the manufacture of the stained glass windows is purely traditional: cutting of the glass, polishing and minor adjustments, assembly (leaded assembly or Tiffany technique), welding, caulking to finish off small details, etc.
Grisaille and enamelling at a low and at a high temperature. Having complete mastery over the art of glass requires mastering the oven, the appliance of colour, drawing, and being able to obtain the patinas which imitate the passing of time. This mastery is what creates the difference between flat colours and colours which come to life with volume and depth. The mastery of grisailles and enamels can only be reached after many years of hard work and practice. They are manually applied with the aid of templates and special kinds of brushes such as liners, shaders, etc. Finally, they are fired in the oven so they vitrify and unify with the glass, becoming an indivisible part of it.
Fusing of the glass and thermal shaping in the oven. This is more than an art, it is an absolute adventure. This technique has thousands of different appliances: from the simple fusion of glass on a flat surface to its vertical fusion, boiled, casting, pouring, raking, etc. All these disciplines are the natural evolution of what our predecessors initiated when they observed that the sand from the desert crystalized with fire. Fusing is a technique which requires a deep and vast knowledge on the performance of glass when heat is applied to it, to be able to know the different areas in which its molecular composition is affected in order to finally obtain the aimed-for element. Thermoforming is a technique with the ultimate aim of modifying the shape of glass by means of heat. Parting from a flat sort of glass, different shapes are obtained using moulds or by slumping. Pieces such as new-creation glass basins are carried out with this technique, which is also used in the restoration of lamps, appliances and curved glass tools.
Sculpture using different glass techniques. One of the greatest challenges expression-wise for any artist or artisan master is sculpture in any of its branches, formats and materials. Carlos works with glass and iron, usually aiming to search for an induced oxidation. The techniques here are also varied. However, they tend to be related to fusing.
He also works with alabaster.
He started his training in the field of glass in the year 1990, working at the School Workshop of Stained Glass Windows in the Cathedral of Palencia (1994-1997). Moreover, he has also attended monographic courses on different techniques regarding glass. He has never ceased in… his desire to learn, since he understands that the most important thing to have a good knowledge and training in the world of glassmaking is to constantly research and never lose the passion for the craft.
He has collaborated with the School of Arts in Palencia.
He has carried out stained glass windows such as those for the Collegiate of Toro (Zamora), the Headquarters for the Edades del Hombre 2016, and those of the Monastery of San Pelayo in Cevico Navero, in Palencia, under the direction of Mr. Rafael Manzano.
They also… carry out restorations, such as the stained glass windows of San Martín de Frómista (Palencia), a masterpiece from the Romanesque period in Palencia dating from the 11th century, located in the Camino de Santiago – which were restored in the year 2010 – or the ones in the Town Council, the Casino, or the Consejo de Cuentas, in Palencia.