February 23, 2026
Shattered or art? You decide
Artist who "paints" portraits on glass by hitting it with a hammer
Genius or gimmick? Internet debates the smash-to-portrait artist
TLDR: Simon Berger creates portraits by cracking safety glass with a hammer. Commenters split: some dismiss it as gimmicky and out of place on Hacker News, others compare it to Walead Beshty’s shipping-glass art and enjoy the spectacle—raising the bigger question of whether process or result makes something “art.”
Swiss artist Simon Berger “paints” faces by smashing safety glass with a hammer, turning cracks into shadows and cheekbones. Cool, right? Not everyone thinks so. A comment snarled that it has “no real artistic meaning,” while another added it’s “odd to see things like that on HN,” sparking an internet brawl: genius craft vs gimmick stunt. Fans love the precision—closer, quicker hits make deeper contrasts—and call the hammer his brush. Critics say it’s just breaking stuff with good lighting.
Comparisons flew fast. One commenter linked to Walead Beshty’s piece where glass cubes were shipped and cracked by FedEx, letting delivery chaos do the “painting” for him (museemagazine.com). That turned the thread into Art 101: is the process the art, or the result? Carpenter-turned-artist Berger moved from spray paint and car bodies to glass after staring at a windshield, and yes, the lore matters to believers.
Meanwhile, jokes piled up: “Collab with FedEx when?”, “Hardware-store Michelangelo,” and “Please don’t try this at home—unless you’re my landlord.” Commenters demanded the hammer model; safety-glass stans argued it’s the perfect canvas; skeptics called it Instagram bait. Whether you see depth in fractures or a smash, the community came for the spectacle—and the snark.
Key Points
- •Simon Berger creates portraits by striking and cracking safety glass with a hammer.
- •The glass pane functions as both structural support and the visible medium for his artistic handwriting.
- •Closer, briefer hammer blows produce stronger contrasts and shading in the image.
- •Berger’s background includes spray-painted portraits, carpentry, and assemblages from used car bodies.
- •His idea to work with glass originated from contemplating a car windshield; he focuses on human faces emerging from abstract to figurative perception.