Although Jan Rigden-Clay is no stranger to travelling (she has moved to destinations all over the world roughly 40 times), she was new to taking her world of glass with her when she made a huge move to Paris earlier in the year.
In March Jan grabbed the necessities, packed a couple of torches (although had to leave her favourite GTT ones behind), and flew to France for an undetermined length of time. Throughout her life she has done this more than a few times, "My husband's work has taken us all around the world; Australia, China, Indonesia, Africa...sometimes for weeks, sometimes for months," she says.
However this time things were a little different; this time she had her contemporary art, glass marbles and jewellery business to think about.
The business, which is based in Sheffield, Tasmania, came into being six years ago when Jan - an accomplished oil painter who had studied fine arts in Melbourne - decided to set up an art gallery. As she was working out the nuts and bolts, she painted and became inspired by a series of works featuring marbles, and invested time and energy into learning this new craft. Skip forward six years and her thriving gallery has expanded to feature her intricate glass work. 
Consequently when her husband delivered the news of their latest move, Jan had a new challenge on her hands - new country, new language and, until a few days ago, no long-stay visa.
Making the most of her surroundings, she spent her first few weeks in Europe assessing the local potential. She flew to England where she picked up two new concentrators, spent some time in studios and landed teaching jobs, nipped over to the Netherlands for a spot of networking, and took a tour through Germany, during which she visited the well-known glass-blowing town of Lauscha. "I'm experimenting with Lauscha glass; it's top glass that's really good for sculptural work," she says,
For Jan, who finds her drive in overcoming technical barriers, using varying types of glass has been a crucial part of her artistic development.
"Different glass works better for different applications," she explains, "so you can't get good unless you put some time into it. "
 However she adds that in order to maintain a successful glass business, you have to find a balance between creativity and practicality, and advises aspiring glass artists to keep this in mind.
"You have to make what sells. There's no point in making fancy, time-consuming stuff if nobody is going to buy it. You have to remain as focused as possible while managing everything, learning new skills and getting better," she says "And you have to know your clients; each marketplace has different customers and a gallery is different again. It's a very complex but very important side of the business."
On top of that, glass work comes with its frustrations
"Glassworking keeps you humble and on your toes. Sometimes you'll get to the very last stage and the whole thing will go pear-shaped," Jan explains, "but I've seen some of the guys at the very top work on a piece and then end up throwing it away. It happens to everyone and that's encouraging to know."
This lesson that glass has taught her; that you should stay patient and persevere through the harder times in order to achieve great things, is something that Jan has taken with her to France. 
Despite language and cultural barriers within a few short months she managed to find a studio in an artists' courtyard and an apartment in Versailles. And while finding some of the necessary equipment and glass is proving difficult, with the right outlook, experience and so much potential in the air, Jan's French future is looking tres bright.
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