Glass and culture

Frauenau - the "glass heart of the Glass Road"

Be enchanted by the incredible diversity of glass in Frauenau. In the two glassworks of "Glashütte Eisch GmbH" and "Freiherr von Poschinger Glasmanufaktur“, unique hand-blown pieces of glass are manufactured in a traditional manner.

Accompany glass artists on the fascinating journey into a “world of glass”. Looking over the shoulder of the glass artists clearly shows the skilled craftmanship required to create such precious glass items

The 250 km long “Glass Road“ takes you through Frauenau and is one of the most popular holiday routes in the state. It extends from Neustadt an der Waldnaab via Bodenmais, Zwiesel, Frauenau, Spiegelau and Grafenau and to the three-river city of Passau.

Glass Musuem & Glass Gardens

Glass art as far as the eye can see ...

The Frauenau Glass Museum is located in a very traditional glass region in the Bavarian Forest and presents the cultural history of glass in an impressive manner. This centrally located museum shows the history of the Bavarian-Bohemian glass tradition and the global cultural history of glass with a spectrum of exhibits ranging from antiquity to the present. The varied quality of glass is gigantic. The former sawmill was converted into a round glass tower in 2005. Since 2014, the museum has been under the trusteeship of the government. 


The Glass Gardens were opened in autumn 2010. They currently have 31 unique glass sculptures, making them a true highlight in Frauenau and a must for anyone interested in glass. Artists from Germany, the Czech Republic, Poland, France, Belgium, Spain, Italy and Estonia present their glass artworks here. Lothar Nebl († 2012) had the idea in 1998 and for him only Frauenau came into question as a possible location. The sculpture park offers its visitors a special place to retreat and enjoy some leisure time. Directly from the hotel you can enjoy 24-hour barrier-free access to the Glass Gardens, which cover an area of 8 hectares across a length of approximately 3 km. The gardens are illuminated at night.

Glassworks & manufacture

Experience traditional craftsmanship up close ...

Glashütte Eisch GmbH

At the family-run Glashütte Eisch, traditional glass craftsmanship is combined with modern technology to create top products such as the internationally award-winning  “SensisPlus” wine glass innovation. Eisch has already been recognised multiple times as the number 1 partner in the German specialist glass trade and delivers its glasses to more than 60 countries worldwide. 
Glashütte Eisch is our direct neighbour and just a few feet away.

Glaskunst Hirtreiter

Three generations of master craftmanship: the workshop has been in existence since 1953 and manufactures unique drinking glasses, vases, lamps and glass jewellery. It is now in its third generation of master engravers. You certainly won’t find all facets of this incredible material – but many of them and particularly special ones! In particular: Glaskunst Hirtreiter is Germany’s most important supplier of glass from the master hand of the Glasfachschule Zwiesel.

Karl Schmid

Personality, creativity, handcraft: there are many steps involved in manufacturing unique objects from colourless raw glass. The giant glass bodies of the individually blown light objects require a high level of glass-making skill. Karl Schmid, who has been fascinated by glass throughout his life, personally designs the individual colour, decoration and shape. So each glass object is a uniquely personal item.

Artists

Unusual & breathtaking

Bild-Werk

The Bild-Werk Frauenau is a forum for glass and visual arts, a stage for music, craftwork and fantasy, a cross-border and international meeting point in the Bavarian Forest. The artistic work, with the main focus on glass, also covers painting, graphic reproduction, ceramic, wood and bronze sculpture, mixed media, installation, animation films, theatre or singing. The academy attracts artists and art lovers from many countries in Eastern and Western Europe and around the world.