In this episode of the Physics World Weekly podcast the Ukrainian glass artist and architect Oksana Kondratyeva talks about the long tradition of stained glass making in Ukraine and how the country’s artistic and historical heritage is threatened by the Russian invasion.

This episode is part of our ongoing coverage of the International Year of Glass and Kondratyeva explains how she creates textured glasswork using acid etching and she contrasts this technique with more traditional methods of stained-glass making. She also talks about the stained glass associated with the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and explains why some of her latest work is inspired by quantum computing.

There is much more about history of stained glass in Ukraine in a paper by Kondratyeva called, “New Light on Ukrainian Stained Glass”, which appeared in the Journal of Stained Glass. It can be downloaded from the British Society of Master Glass Painters for a £5 donation towards providing first-aid kits for communities in Lviv and Kyiv.