Vital Peeters, Glass Artist

9 January 1960 – 18 September 2023

Vital with longer hair and sunglasses, leaning against a stone wall, looking to one side.

Vital was born near Antwerp, in Belgium. He was always drawing or painting, winning prizes at school and making designs and posters for his company during his national service. This passion never left him.

He came to England in 1982 as a young man seeing more of the world. Here he met his partner Jules with whom he would share a life for the next forty-one years. He studied History of Art and Fine Art at Brookes University in Oxford, and it was in Oxford in 1990 that he opened his first studio, becoming a full-time glass artist.

His studio became a regular feature for Oxfordshire Artweeks for the next thirty years where hundreds of visitors admired his work, as well as the clients who called in to explore their commissions.

Vital with short hair and a white T-shirt, smiling for the camera. Big green leaves behind.

He ran popular classes sharing the techniques he had mastered for over twenty years, launching some brilliant new careers.

Vital made leaded glass panels using the techniques of painting (using oxides and enamels baked in the kiln), sandblasting and acid etching. He developed his own techniques of kiln fused layers of glass to add texture and facets to catch the light which he incorporated in the leaded panels. His use of textures, vibrant colours and his flowing modern designs became his hallmark.

His prolific work was commissioned by Oxford colleges, hospitals and hospices, Oxford Town Hall, commercial bodies and many private houses. These are now installed in Oxford, across the country, across Europe and even further afield. He also made occasional free-hanging pieces, slumped glass bowls and cast glass sculptures.

Vital with longer hair but without glasses, wearing a green T-shirt and smiling for the camera.

As both a skilled craftsman and a talented artist his work was unique. He was the author of ‘Stained Glass: The Art of Crafts’ (Crowood Press) and was one of twenty-five UK-based artists featured in ‘Fifty Distinguished Contemporary Artists in Glass’ (The Intelligent Layman), an international compendium.

He never stopped drawing, sketching and painting. He later took up stone sculpture and clay modelling. This work is in many houses and gardens.

Vital died in September 2023 of bowel cancer, aged sixty-three.

This website is designed to illustrate the creative legacy Vital left behind of which he was so proud. It is hoped that it will inspire other artists too. Explore the galleries:

For any questions or for further information please contact Vital’s husband Jules Fletcher at julian.jf6@gmail.com.