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Letter from the Editor 6 Beginning Over Again with the Summer by Shawn Waggoner Pioneers in Glass Dale Chihuly May/June 2014 Volume 29, Number 3 8 Reconnecting Culture and Horticulture by Shawn Waggoner Winning Glass Buyers Market of American Craft 14 A Successful Final Show in Philadelphia

Working Greener The Crucible 16 Powered by the Sun by Shawn Waggoner Independent Artist Childhoods Lost 20 The Dreamlike and Enigmatic Work of Sibylle Peretti by Shawn Waggoner International Glass 26 Contemporary Glass Showcase Warm Glass Studio Profile 28 Art & Artifacts Glass Studio by Colleen Bryan Skills and Techniques Cast Glass Door Inserts, Part 1 34 Creating the Clay Mold by Cathy Coverley Marketing 38 Keep Your Business Eyes and Ears Open by Mark Veit Philanthropic Glass 40 Charitable Pipes by Colleen Bryan Retailer Profile Dan Hohl 48 A Retailer at Heart by Colleen Bryan AGG News AGG Summer Conference 52 “Glasstopia” at Bryn Athyn 2014 by Tony Glander Educational Glass Bryn Athyn College 54 Summer Workshops in Stained Glass and Glass Painting by Shawn Waggoner What’s New Featuring the latest in books and products 57 for the glass enthusiast by Darlene Welch 59 Readers’ Forum SAMA News Local Project Goes International in 60 Puento Alto, Santiago, Chile by Gwyn Kaitis Above: Sibylle Peretti, I Search in Snow 2. Photo by Mike Smith. 62 Advertisers’ Index On the cover: Dale Chihuly, Torchier, 8' x 5-1/2' x 5-1/2', Franklin Park Conservatory, Columbus, Ohio, installed 2009.

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www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 5 Glass Art Letter from the Editor Volume 29, Number 3 Publisher ~ Maureen James Beginning Over Again with the Summer Editor ~Shawn Waggoner Copy Editor ~ Darlene Welch Meeting with glass artists, manufacturers, retail- Accounting ~ Rhonda Sewell ers, studios, and collectors provides Glass Art with the impetus to create new content and benefits that Circulation Manager ~ Kathy Gentry help keep the glass arts alive and thriving. Inspired by Advertising ~ Maureen James the excitement of the Glass Art Society conference in Graphic Artists ~ Dave Burnett Chicago, Illinois, and the Glass Craft & Bead Expo Mark Waterbury in Las Vegas, Nevada, Glass Art magazine announces Contributing Artists and Writers some new and compelling offerings in print and online. Glass Expert Webinars™ are live, two-hour interactive Web workshops with renowned Colleen Bryan, Cathy Coverley glass artists that require no traveling while affording the opportunity to expand your skills. Tony Glander, Gwyn Kaitis Visit the Glass Expert Webinars™ link under “What’s New” at www.glasspatterns.com Mark Veit, Shawn Waggoner for more details. We will also soon be adding a one-hour lecture series each month in the Darlene Welch form of an online artist presentation or slide show. This will provide wonderful opportunities for Webinar instructors to share their knowledge through a different format. Later in Glass Art™ 2014, Glass Art will launch both a blog and a podcast to provide new avenues for online ISSN 1068-2147 is published bimonthly discussion and dissemination of glass related information. by Glass Patterns Quarterly, Inc. This early summer issue of Glass Art celebrates the season with Dale Chihuly’s gar- POSTMASTER: Send address dens under glass. The Denver Botanic Gardens, Denver, Colorado, will present the Rocky changes to Glass Art, Mountain Region’s first outdoor exhibition of artwork by Chihuly from June 14 through November 30, 2014. His sculptures—a shimmery mix of tendrils, buds, and fronds ranging 8300 Hidden Valley Road, in size and form—will transform the gardens’ 24-acre urban oasis with their bold colors P.O. Box 69, Westport, KY 40077 and exotic beauty. By contrast, we bid farewell to winter with an examination of Sibylle Telephone: 800-719-0769 Peretti’s new work, inspired by fairy tales in which the melting snow produces life. Her 502-222-5631 latest body of work consists of both lost wax cast pieces utilizing a palette of white glass with few traces of color and her layered panels. Facsimile: 502-222-4527 Stained glass will also blossom at “Glasstopia,” the American Glass Guild’s confer- Website: www.GlassArtMagazine.com ence at Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, June 26–30, 2014. The gathering hosts American Glass E-mail: [email protected] Now: 2014, a juried members’ exhibition to be held at Glencairn Museum. A keynote talk Subscriptions: United States, Canada, by internationally acclaimed stained glass artist, Narcissus Quagliata, will follow. The full and Mexico (U.S. Funds): one year $30; conference will feature tours, workshops, demonstrations, lectures, and panel discussions. “And so with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, just as two years $48; three years $60. Foreign things grow in fast movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again (U.S. Funds): one year $56, one year with the summer.” —F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby airmail $70. Single copy price (U.S.) $7. Helping to fuel your great burst of summer creativity, All subscriptions must be paid in U.S. dollars with an international money order or with a check Shawn Waggoner drawn on a U.S. bank. Editor Periodicals Postage Paid at Westport, KY 40077 and additional mailing offices. ©2014 Glass Patterns Quarterly, Inc. Gloria Badiner Tablet-It's a long story All items submitted to Glass Art become the sole property of Glass Art and cannot Be sure to like us on Facebook at be reproduced without the written con- www.facebook.com/pages/Glass-Art-Magazine sent of the publisher. Advertisers and/or www.facebook.com/pages/Glass-Art-Editor-Shawn-Waggoner agencies assume all liabilities for printed Deadlines for Advertising advertisements in Glass Art. Opinions July/August 2014 September/October 2014 expressed in Glass Art may not necessar- Ad Closing May 20, 2014 Ad Closing July 20, 2014 ily reflect the opinion of the magazine, its Ad Materials May 30, 2014 Ad Materials July 30, 2014 management, or its advertisers. Issue Mails June 27, 2014 Issue Mails August 28, 2014

6 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com

www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 7 Pioneers in Glass

DaleDale ChihulyChihuly Reconnecting Culture and Horticulture

Dale Chihuly, Thames Skiff, 6' x 28' x 8', Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, England, installed 2005.

by Shawn Waggoner

n a subversion of boundaries, the installation of Dale Chihuly’s In 1968, after receiving a Fulbright Fellowship, Chihuly went to magnificent artwork in the conservatory environment allows work at the Venini glass factory in Venice, Italy. There he observed Iviewers to see both his sculpture and the surrounding plants in a the team approach to blowing glass, which is critical to the way new light. Because glasshouses simulate natural environments, he works today. In 1971, he co-founded Pilchuck Glass School in introducing Chihuly’s work in such a setting turns the effect on the Washington State. With this international glass center, Chihuly has illusion amplifier up to 11. led the avant-garde in the development of glass as a fine art. “What is so novel here? Why is this display enthralling nearly Chihuly’s work is included in more than 200 museum collections every visitor who comes to see it? Beauty has fallen out of favor in worldwide. He has been the recipient of many awards, including 12 recent years, though we would never admit it. We think we value honorary doctorates and two fellowships from the National Endow- it, but what gets put forth in this culture is usually about something ment for the Arts. He has created more than a dozen well-known else such as fashion, design, or entertainment. So to encounter series of works, among them Cylinders and Baskets in the 1970s; something of true beauty—however that may strike one—can Seaforms, Macchia, Venetians, and Persians in the 1980s; Niijima be a deeply moving experience,” wrote Lisa C. Roberts, Garfield Floats and Chandeliers in the 1990s; and Fiori in the 2000s. He has Conservatory director. been honored with a solo exhibition, Dale Chihuly objets de verre, Born in 1941 in Tacoma, Washington, Chihuly was introduced to at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Palais du Louvre in Paris, France. glass while studying interior design at the University of Washington. The Victoria and Albert Museum in London, England, curated the After graduating in 1965, he enrolled in the first glass program in exhibition Chihuly at the V&A in 2001. the country at the University of Wisconsin. He continued his stud- Chihuly is also celebrated for large architectural installations. In ies at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), where he later 1995, he began Chihuly Over Venice, for which he created sculptures established the glass program and taught for more than a decade. at glass factories in Finland, Ireland, and Mexico, then installed them

8 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com Dale Chihuly, Macchia Forest, Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 2007.

over the canals and piazzas of Venice. In 1999, Chihuly started an Palm House, which was designed by the architect Gustav Runge ambitious exhibition, Chihuly in the Light of Jerusalem. More than after being built in Bremen, Germany, in 1875, then shipped and a million visitors attended the Tower of David Museum to view erected at the Adelaide Botanical Gardens. his installations. Both of these projects informed and inspired his Chihuly’s U.S. Garden Cycle began in 2001 at the Garfield Park Garden Cycle of work for conservatories. Conservatory in Chicago, Illinois. “When I saw Garfield Park, I “Inventory and parts remained from both Chihuly Over Venice knew I wanted to do an installation there,” says Chihuly. During his and Light of Jerusalem that were later incorporated into or that in- first show, attendance at the conservatory increased from 180,000 to spired my conservatory exhibitions,” says Chihuly. “I might revisit 600,000, and word began to spread through the conservatory com- certain forms from one installation for the next but use different munity that exhibiting Chihuly’s art resulted in a dramatic spike in glass. The work is ever-changing and evolving.” attendance. “I was just trying to make something like no one had ever seen before and make it as beautiful as I could. It wasn’t new Transforming the Glasshouse for me to be working with vegetation or to install my work outside. Chihuly’s work in conservatories began in 1995, when he placed But the greenhouse environment was unique, and my work fit well cut-crystal shapes in the vinery that Joseph Paxton designed in the in that setting, because I create forms that work with nature.” 1860s for the Duke of Devonshire’s hunting estate at Lismore Castle Chihuly went on to exhibit at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, in Ireland. Later that year, he installed a more ambitious project at the England, near London in 2005; the de Young Museum in San restored Curvilinear Range, one of the glasshouses at the National Francisco, California, in 2008; the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Botanical Gardens in Glasnevin, Ireland. This lacelike architectural Massachusetts, in 2011; and Canada’s Montreal Museum of Fine jewel was designed and built by William Turner in 1843. In 2000, Arts, in 2013. Chihuly Garden and Glass, a long-term exhibition, Chihuly went to Australia to work at various sites including the opened at the Washington Seattle Center in 2012.

www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 9 Dale Chihuly, Niijima Floats, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Coral Gables, Florida, 2006.

Chihuly’s lifelong fascination with transparency in architecture Chihuly at Garfield Park includes a thorough knowledge of glasshouse history and glass Constructed in 1886, Garfield Park Conservatory was one of the architecture. RISD’s rare-book collection introduced him to a first earliest public conservatories built in the United States. It was later edition of Raymond McGrath and A.C. Frost’s 1937 classic, Glass razed, along with the Humboldt and Douglas Park Conservatories, in Architecture and Decoration. Through essays and extraordinary and a huge, centralized facility opened in 1908. The new Garfield photographs, the origins of the glasshouse is revealed. Glass Ar- Park Conservatory was the largest in the world, the vision of cel- chitecture by the German poet Paul Scheerbart (1914) and Alpine ebrated landscape architect Jens Jensen, who was also the park’s Architecture by architect Bruno Taut (1919) shared their fantasies superintendent at the time. of living in cities encapsulated by glass domes where glass houses Bucking the Victorian tradition of displaying plants in groupings were adorned with glass furniture. Scheerbart’s and Taut’s elevated of pots, Jensen designed each room as a natural looking landscape, glass culture inspired Chihuly and invariably his students. a revolutionary approach. It was not the first time plants had been Historically, conservatories provided an experience—a departure placed directly into the soil, but Jensen made the practice his own from people’s daily lives. Tropical plants were displayed in such a by placing stonework, lagoons, and plants to mask the mechanical way as to evoke romantic fantasies about faraway places, nature, structures supporting them, creating the illusion of a natural setting. and the world. In the 19th century, an age of great exploration and Jensen’s approach set the tone for 20th-century conservatories. widespread collecting, it was not uncommon to find plants displayed Today, plant collections are typically organized for public dis- alongside animals, artifacts, and other curios from newly discovered play according to botanically based themes such as plant family, lands. Music and artwork also found their way into conservatory native origin, or habitat, and they are exhibited in pleasing, scenic settings, which provided an idyllic venue for cultural pursuits. arrangements that mimic their natural environs. Scientific and In many ways, Chihuly’s installations reference and recall these public dimensions are balanced with education as a primary goal. precedents. He has reconnected culture and horticulture through A conservatory’s effectiveness can be gauged by the accuracy of his gardens under glass. its reproductions.

10 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com Into this reality, Chihuly interjected his exotic and alluring artwork, and the result can only be described as enchantment. In a remarkable throwback to the days when conservatories presented people with sights that were stunning and new, the magic of his art transformed the plants so that viewers could see nature in a whole new light. “This exhibition at the Garfield Park Conservatory in Chicago gives us another context in which to consider Dale Chihuly’s installations. He has increasingly challenged preconceived notions of how and where art can be exhibited. Long a veteran of exhibiting in the ‘white boxes of the museum world,’ he has increasingly sought opportunities to take his work outside, into the realm of public art spaces, and out into the landscape,” wrote Mark McDonnell, pro- ducer of the award-winning documentary Chihuly in the Hotshop.

Dale Chihuly, Peacock Blue Tower, 17' x 7', Garfield Park Conservatory, Chicago, Illinois, 2001.

www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 11 Making and Installing the Work With a degree in sculpture, Chihuly has been able to design Chihuly’s creative team assists him in implementing his vision armatures to hold an infinite combination of glass parts, an assem- for gallery exhibitions, client commissions, museums, and botani- blage aesthetic common to avant-garde sculpture of the 1960s. “We cal shows worldwide. The planning phase alone for one botanical do all of the hands-on building but have worked with some great show takes a couple of years. The process begins with a site visit volunteers and staff from the gardens helping us all along the way,” to gather information, take photographs, and talk with conservatory says Britt Cornett, who has managed Chihuly’s shows for the last leadership. Chihuly’s team returns to the studio, where he puts pen nine years as head of exhibitions. to paper and, in time, organically creates a plan for the exhibition. Cornett heralds the 26 neon panels installed in stair step fash- Depending on the size and complexity of the work, Chihuly ion leading to the top of a butte at the Desert Botanical Garden in uses a team of anywhere from four to 14 glassblowers to actualize Phoenix, Arizona, as one of her favorite installations. “If you’re his creative vision. To communicate his ideas to the team, Chihuly approaching the garden after sunset, it’s really stunning—a beautiful sometimes creates large, colorful, and gestural drawings, which have installation,” she says. “It hadn’t been done before and is unique to evolved into works of art that have their own importance. that exhibition.” The Phoenix show runs through May 2014.

Dale Chihuly, Persian Pond, Garfield Park Conservatory, Chicago, Illinois, 2001.

Dale Chihuly, Red Reeds, Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, Grand Rapids, Michigan, installed 2010.

12 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com Chihuly in Denver The Denver Botanic Gardens, Denver, Colorado, will present the Rocky Mountain Region’s first outdoor exhibition of artwork by Chihuly from June 14 through November 30, 2014. His sculptures, a shimmery mix of tendrils, buds, and fronds ranging in size and form, will transform the gardens’ 24-acre urban oasis with their bold colors and exotic beauty. Chihuly Nights will run October 3 through November 30. This nightly viewing affords attendees the opportunity to see the sculptures illuminated at night. “We are thrilled to welcome Chihuly to Denver Botanic Gar- dens,” says Brian Vogt, CEO of the gardens. “This special opportunity will bring an internationally recognized artist to the Denver metro area and the Rocky Mountain West. The iconic artwork will enhance the gardens’ living collection in a powerful yet graceful way that is at once familiar and otherworldly.” The fundamental notion behind Chihuly’s elegant garden under glass has its basis in the winter gardens of bygone days when plants mixed freely with the arts. Drawing on this tradition, the Denver Botanic Gardens will display site-specific sculpture installations in approximately 12 locations throughout the gardens. These will include Chihuly’s Floats, a Mille Fiori installation in the Monet pool, and a Saffron Neon Tower. A looping video featuring a comprehensive survey of Chihuly’s work and process will also be on view. “We had 860,000 people walk through our doors in 2013. An exhibition like this is exciting, because it appeals to so many different audiences,” says Lisa M.W. Eldred, Director of Exhibitions, Art & Interpretation at the Denver Botanic Gardens. “No one else works like Chihuly, and we know based on his work in other garden spaces that the juxtaposition is fabulous.” Glasshouse visitors seek time for introspection, helped along by the characteristics of the space—warmth, moisture, the organic smell of soil, and the sound of water. These work in harmony Proudly Manufactured in Redlands, CA, U.S.A. together with an atmospheric light, one that Chihuly has spent a career observing and experimenting with in order to bring his glass to life. Not many artists would want to display glass sculpture in this environment, let alone achieve such notoriety by doing so. But by magnifying his work to fit the scale of the space and introducing www.covington-engineering.com bold colors and exotic forms in a manner that makes the art an equal of the plant, Chihuly has reintroduced excitement to the glasshouse. He has redefined the conservatory experience and what it means to Visit us in booth 300 commune with nature in that setting. at the Glass Craft & “My work attracts many people who have never been to a green- Bead Expo to test house,” Chihuly says. “And many people who visit conservatories out this unit! regularly become more interested in looking at art when they see my work there. Either way, a large number of people are exposed to my art, and I like that.” 715 West Colton Avenue - Redlands CA 92374 Avenue Colton 715 West [email protected] Visit www.botanicgardens.org for more information and additional related programs associated with Chi- huly at the Denver Botanic Gardens. For more information on Dale Chihuly, go to www.chihuly.com. Horizontal 1-877-793-6636 . 1-909-793-6636 © Copyright 2014 Beveler/Grinder by Glass Art. All rights reserved.

www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 13 Winning Glass BuyersBuyers MarketMarket ofof AmericanAmerican CraftCraft A Successful Final Show in Philadelphia

he Buyers Market of American Craft, the nation’s premier wholesale trade show for American-made items, has wrapped up its 2014 winter Tmarket, bidding farewell to its long-term home in Philadelphia, Penn- sylvania. The show will rebrand itself as the American Made Show and relocate to the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C., in 2015. “We are thrilled about the success of our final show in Philadelphia,” states show director, Rebecca Mercado. “Of course, we are sad to leave Philly, but we are excited about the new opportunities that await us in Washington, D.C.”

Finding Online Marketing Success For more than 30 years, the Buyers Market has showcased the finest handmade products by American and Canadian studio artists to qualified retail buyers. This year, the Buyers Market partnered with e-marketing expert SnapRetail to bring its attendees six new marketing seminars. Drawing a large crowd of buyers and exhibitors, the seminars provided participants with tips and tricks for driving online marketing success. In addition to the seminars, the show held daily fashion shows featuring wearable art designed by Buyers Market exhibitors, and the Jewelry Preview gave studio jewelers an opportunity to showcase their latest designs to buyers who arrived early. The annual NICHE Awards ceremony, held in conjunction with the Buyers Market, celebrated excellence in fine craft and design. “This is our first time at the Buyers Market of American Craft, and we love the diversity that the show brings in,” says one of the show’s participants. “The staff and all the exhibitors have all been incredibly kind and helpful. We are looking forward to next year.” William Zweifel, Tangle Elkhorn, Wisconsin

Amanda Wilcox, Cling Demetra Theofanous, Protection/Constraint Cleveland Institute of Art Cleveland, Ohio Mountain View, California

14 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com Carrie Gustafson, Devotion Arlington, Massachusetts

Ryan Thompson, Family Matters Bowling Green State University Bowling Green, Ohio

NICHE Fine Craft Competition NICHE magazine is the exclusive trade publication for retailers NICHE magazine also honors the artistic achievements of stu- of fine American- and Canadian-made craft.Each year, the NICHE dents enrolled in North American undergraduate, graduate, and cer- Awards recognize excellence and innovation in North American tificate arts programs with its NICHE Student Awards competition. fine craft. In the professional division, judging is based on three Finalists are determined by the editors of NICHE magazine, as well main criteria: technical excellence both in surface design and as American Made Show staff. In the professional division, jurors form, market viability, and a distinct quality of unique, original, selected 174 finalists out of nearly 1,000 entries in 35 categories. and creative thought. In the student division, jurors selected 85 finalists out of nearly 600 The professional division was judged by Michael Higdon, muse- entries in 17 categories. All finalists were invited to display their um shop manager at the National Building Museum in Washington, work in the NICHE Awards Finalist Gallery at the American Made D.C.; Dana Singer, former executive director of the Society of North Show. Finalists in the professional division were featured in the American Goldsmiths (SNAG); Erin Fergusson, senior manager of winter 2014 issue of NICHE magazine. merchandising at UncommonGoods, an online marketplace head- quartered in Brooklyn, New York, offering creatively designed, Visit www.nicheawards.com for a complete list of finalists. Also high-quality merchandise; and Stan and Judy Gillis, owners of visit www.americanmadeshow.com to learn more about the Ameri- The Real Mother Goose in Portland, Oregon, featuring the Pacific can Made Show. Northwest’s largest collection of fine American craft. © Copyright 2014 by Glass Art. All rights reserved.

www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 15 Working Greener

The Crucible Powered by the Sun

by Shawn Waggoner

he Crucible in Oakland, California, provides cutting-edge arts education Tprograms to 5,000 adult and youth students annually in metal fabrication, blacksmithing, neon, glassblowing, ceramics, welding, kinetics, and fire In 2006, solar panels were installed on the roof to offset electri- dancing. The nonprofit was founded on the principle of reusing and cal use, and the glass program was eventually expanded to include repurposing objects, keeping them out of the waste stream and find- flameworking with borosilicate and soft glass, neon and plasma, ing unique uses for them. To counter its energy intensive offerings, casting and cold working, fusing and slumping, ladle casting, blow- The Crucible has also installed a solar photovoltaic system on its ing, and sculptural work in the hot shop. roof, providing an alternative, renewable energy source. Over the years, and with the generous support of donors, foun- “As a community organization, a cornerstone of our mission is to dations, volunteers, and members, The Crucible has become the be environmentally sustainable in supporting the arts. As a nonprofit largest nonprofit industrial arts educational facility in the United organization, our high energy needs also motivated us to look into States. “Together we have brought the positive creative force of ways to alleviate that cost. Undertaking a solar energy project fit art into our community, each year introducing more people to the right in with both of these goals,” said former executive director of rewards of creating with their hands and imaginations,” says current The Crucible, Michael Sturtz. Crucible executive director Steven Young. In 2007, Sturtz and a team of Crucible volunteers known as Courses are offered in a variety of formats including 10-week The Diesel Dozen crafted Die Moto, a non-petroleum-powered courses, five-week courses, week-long courses, tasters, and weekend motorcycle fabricated from BMW motorcycle parts and a high- intensives. Crucible classes feature an extremely low faculty-to- performance BMW automotive diesel engine. Die Moto ran at student ratio and a hands-on teaching approach. Bonneville on Greenline Industries’ B100 biodiesel fuel and set a new diesel motorcycle land speed world record at 130.614 MPH. There’s Got to Be an Invisible Sun Whether creating Die Moto or considering The Crucible’s future, The Crucible’s solar project was a joint effort among community Sturtz believed that environmental responsibility combined with and trade organizations, energy coalitions, volunteers, and progres- alternative technology would result in higher performance and sive equipment manufacturers. In 2005, the total solar project cost increased return. of approximately $260,000 was paid for by individual donations from The Crucible’s supporters, financing of $106,000 by SAFE- In the Beginning BIDCO, and a one-time $119,525 rebate through the Self-Generation The Crucible opened on January 15, 1999, in a rented Incentive Program (SGIP) from Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E). The 6,000-square-foot warehouse in west Berkeley, California. Sturtz, nonprofit also qualified for a City of Oakland expedited building a sculptor, and a small group of dedicated cohorts shared a vision permit at reduced cost offered to solar installations. The Crucible for a new kind of industrial arts educational experience that offered partnered with Cooperative Community Energy and Marin Solar for anyone and everyone the opportunity to be creative. A small grant the installation, which included a cooperative workforce involving helped them open The Crucible’s doors, and the first session began the art students from The Crucible and trainees from the local Cy- with 11 classes, seven of them taught by Sturtz. press Mandela Pre-Apprenticeship Training Center in West Oakland. In March 2003, The Crucible celebrated its grand reopening Since May 2006, the Crucible’s 56,000-square-foot studio has in a new Oakland facility, and shortly after Joan Reep, a pioneer used the sun’s energy to generate much of the electricity it uses with woman glassblower from Colorado, donated her entire glass shop. a 34-kilowatt photovoltaic solar electric system consisting of 240 “Her generous donation made it possible for The Crucible to start Sharp 170 solar photovoltaic modules mounted on aluminum rack- the hot glass area. She donated furnaces, glory holes, burners, tools, ing atop the roof. During the day, the solar panels absorb sunlight, everything! The cold shop was also established with her equipment,” creating direct current (DC) electrical power that is converted to says Mary White, former co-head of fusing/slumping at The Cru- alternating current (AC) electricity by six SMA America Sunny cible. “It was an amazing donation that helped our program progress Boy 6000 inverters. This power is either used by The Crucible or to Michael Sturtz’s original vision of a comprehensive glass area.” fed back into PG&E’s electrical distribution system.

16 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com The Benefits Solar power, long touted for its role in a sustainable energy future, still provides less than 1 percent of California’s electricity. Yet despite many hurdles, solar developments like that at The Crucible serve to provide leadership and a model for a national and worldwide conversion to solar energy. The Crucible utilizes the same amount of energy as eight California homes, and the solar system now produces about 35 percent of the total annual need. From May 2006 through the end of October 2007, The Crucible saved approximately $27,700 in electrical costs. During 2007, average savings during the summer period were $2,015 per month and $680 per month during the winter period. Savings for 2007 were $14,808, year to date through the end of October. These savings help cover the cost of the seven-year loan used in addition to donations and rebates to purchase the system, estimated to pay for itself in 10 years.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle “For the last 15 years, creative reuse and landfill diversion have been at the core of The Crucible’s operating philosophy. Everything from local lumber to larger items such as damaged shipping containers can be used by Crucible students to make art or enhance our working space,” says Joey Gottbrath, director of Crucible studio operations. The Crucible works with a variety of companies including Bayer Pharmaceutical, IKEA, Pixar, and CASS to creatively reuse their discarded materials including scrap metal for welded sculpture, bottles and window glass for art glass, and old electronics for kinetics and robotics classes. CASS is a processor of ferrous and nonferrous metals servicing the domestic and international markets of the scrap metal industry for over 40 years. In addition to supplying and recycling metals for The Crucible, approximately Mary Bayard White, Living on the Currents, four yards of sawdust from the Crucible’s woodturning program is recycled window glass, mirror, and scrap steel, reused by CASS as mulch in their scrap yards and diverted from 16" x 17" x 12", 2002. the landfill each month.

www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 17 Different Shades of Green In an effort to bring more sustainable practices to the glass area, JEN-KEN Pro-Fusion White introduced several recycled glass courses to the Crucible in GLASS KILNS 2007. White is on the Board of both BioGlass (a source of informa- From our Drawing tion for the research and development of eco-efficient glass studios worldwide) and Women Environmental Artists Directory (WEAD). Board to your Studio! “BioGlass founder Julie Conway wanted people to be able to find Pro-Fusion LiteTop-Firing Glass Kiln information on the Internet about ways that small studios can reduce carbon emissions and fuel use. We encourage those who have taken Heats and Cools Quickly steps to create more sustainable practice to contribute photos and information via the website.” Fuses Glass in about Working with recycled glass presents a series of challenges 1.5 Hours including limited color range, varying compatibilities, and un- This 16" square kiln predictable sources. “At the Crucible, students are asked to be adventurous and curious. When I was there, engineers and scientists weighs only 45 pounds! were attracted to my class, because they are willing to do the neces- Features sary testing of materials,” says White. One of the most successful ● Element at Lid in Quartz Tubes ways to use many recycled glasses, other than slumping pieces, is ● 120Volts – 15 Amps Draw AF3P 16 Square to cast the glass into molds. “Recycled glass is great for making ● Clamshell Design large basins, such as bird baths with solar pumps, and also for other ● Stay-Back Lid for Easy Project Assembly outdoor applications. Bottles, mayonnaise jars, window glass, and ● 1700ºF Maximum Temperature ● Small Kiln with Big Kiln Features glass lenses from eyeglasses can all be used, but to insure compat- ● 1-Year Limited Warranty ibility, are rarely combined.” ● All Rigid Fiber Construction ● Even Heat Distribution Perfect for Fusing, Future Goals Slumping, Annealing, and Painting The Crucible has a 600-pound Stadelman Glassworks electric 1-800-329-KILN www.jenkenkilns.com furnace in storage. In addition to adding recuperation on existing furnaces and glory holes, Gottbrath says the goal is to double the Manufacturers of the finest electric kilns since 1951 amount of solar power on the roof to cover all electrical costs and get the Stadelman furnace up and running. “That would give us a true break-even point. The current array of solar panels only takes up one-third of the roof space, so there is room to grow.”

Look for Subscriber Benefits coming to Subscribers Only via links in upcoming e-mails from Glass Art. This Bonus Content will include additional information on The Crucible hot shop’s eco-friendly practices.

The Crucible 1260 7th Street, Oakland, California 94607 (510) 444-0919 © Copyright 2014 www.thecrucible.org by Glass Art. 1732 Wright Ave, Richmond CA www.bioglass.org All rights reserved. (800) 227-1780 [email protected]

18 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com Complete Fused Fantasies step-by-step Books now available from fusing instructions! Glass Patterns Quarterly

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www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 19 Independent Artist Childhoods Lost TheThe DreamlikeDreamlike andand EnigmaticEnigmatic WorkWork ofof SibylleSibylle PerettiPeretti

Sibylle Peretti, Snow Child, kiln cast glass, engraved, by Shawn Waggoner pigments, 8" x 48" x 14", 2012. Photo by Mike Smith.

ibylle Peretti’s art illuminates the tension between beauty and Her tributes to childhoods lost are often exhibited in pairs and disease, intimacy and distance, innocence and knowledge. Lay- converse without words with one another and the natural world. Sered panels and cast glass sculpture pose questions about identity Ethereal imagery and haunting subtexts flow freely from porcelain and the way we experience ourselves in the world. Her images of sculpture and mixed media panels, which incorporate multiple layers children are unforgettable, because they just might carry the answer of paper, oil paint, and watercolor on either side of Plexiglas. These to the question, what makes us human? techniques allow Peretti to create a mood in her work—a darkly ro- German born, Peretti trained as a glassmaker in the regional mantic mix of fairy tale and tension. Her skillful combination of en- Zwiesel Glass School in Bavaria, Germany, and received her MFA graving, photography, painting, and glass casting exposes exquisitely in painting and sculpture from the Academy of Fine Arts in Cologne, subtle environments we wish to enter in spite of some uneasiness. Germany. Her work is represented in the collection of the Corning Museum of Glass in Corning, New York; Carnegie Museum of Training in Germany Art in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Montreal Museum of Fine Arts Peretti’s father worked as a developer and designer for an in- in Montreal, Canada; Museum fur Kunsthandwerk in Frankfurt, dustrial glass company, traveling frequently to the Bavarian Forest Germany; the American Glass Museum in Millville, New Jersey; where he worked with traditional glassmakers on historic bottle and the Glazenhuis in Lommel, Belgium, as well as other public shapes and replicas. She accompanied him on one of these trips and and private collections in the United States, Canada, and Europe. saw for the first time the old glassblowing factories, still operating She has received grants from the Pollock-Krasner Foundation, the the way they did 100 years ago. She knew from that time on she Joan Mitchell Foundation, and the United States Artist Fellowship. would work with glass in some way. She was also awarded three residencies at the Creative Glass Center Peretti trained as a glassmaker at Zwiesel Glass School in Ba- of America, Millville, New Jersey. varia focusing on glass engraving, painting, cutting, and etching. Since 1996, the artist has lived and worked in New Orleans, Her teacher, Franz Xaver Hoeller, taught her the sensibility for the Louisiana, with husband and glass artist Stephen Paul Day, with material and the importance of incorporating detail. “I was given whom she produces large-scale installations. Peretti recently pre- the skills necessary to embellish a functional object with a sense pared for her solo exhibition, I Search in Snow, that runs through of wondrous beauty. At the same time I felt the limitation of this May 30, 2014, at Callan Contemporary Gallery in New Orleans, process. I wanted to push the material further. I needed to find my Louisiana, and a solo exhibition at Heller Gallery, New York, New personal voice in the craft and the vision I had of the purpose of York, in 2015. these skills.”

20 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com Sibylle Peretti, I Search in Snow 8, kiln formed glass, silvered, engraved, painted, 20" x 10", 2014. Photo by Mike Smith.

In 1987, she studied painting at the Cologne Academy of Fine Art. During this time she en- joyed the freedom of realizing ideas. Choosing a material was secondary. “Although my studies at the academy in Cologne were artistically open, I chose to continue working in glass but in a context more suitable to the philosophies of the fine arts. The fragility and translucency of the material afforded me an added dimension, an extra layer to enhance my ideas of humanity's temporal ex- istence. Glass allowed me an expression deeply connected to my vision. Beneath the surface, I could produce a mysterious world, a dreamlike atmosphere where connections are tenuous and brittle. Most of my work in Germany explored that dialogue between idea and material, between creating layers of meaning and the object. Glass was that magic canvas that connected it all together.” Although her aesthetic goals are similar today, the skills necessary to realize her vision have increased. Awarded a number of residencies in various cities and countries that were influential on her work, Peretti began to work in cast glass and has continued using that process. She has also cast porcelain, using the material to produce life-size figures. Sibylle Peretti, Thaw (detail). Photo by Will Crocker.

www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 21 Formats for Storytelling Peretti’s work encompasses panels, sculpture, and installations. Her three-dimensional cast glass sculpture is used in conjunction with two-dimensional wall panels to create a whole environment. Many kiln cast pieces are realized through the lost wax process, which entails sculpting the figure in clay, then building a silicone or plaster mold around the clay. Once the clay is removed, a negative mold of the piece is created into which the wax is poured. After the wax hardens, the silicone or plaster mold is removed, leaving behind a wax positive that Peretti works by adding details or carving. Using a ceramic mold material called Zircar, Peretti builds up a mold around the wax. Once the material reaches the desired thickness, she burns out the wax to produce the final negative mold, which is ready to fill with pieces of glass. The mold is placed in a kiln, and the glass is melted into it. During this process, Peretti refills the mold at least three times. Larger pieces require as much as two weeks in the kiln to anneal. “The more creative part starts for me when the piece comes out of the kiln and is ready for the engraving and painting. This brings the piece to life.” To achieve the dreamlike tone of her panels, Peretti uses Plexiglas, which affords her the ability to build up multiple layers of imagery. A combination of engraving the background and foreground and painting both sides of the Plexiglas creates their three-dimensional effect.

Sibylle Peretti, Elderberries, carved, engraved, painted, and silvered Plexiglas, paper, 98" x 36" x 1", 2014. Photo by Mike Smith.

Sibylle Peretti, To Know a Hawk, kiln cast glass, engraved, pigments, 18" x 28" x 14", 2013. Photo by Will Crocker.

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Peretti’s Children Much of the artist’s aesthetic inspiration is based upon pictures of children found in her grandfather’s medical books from the 1940s. “For the last ten years, my work has examined childhood and the child’s identity in this revolving world of adverse layers. Many of these children I find in old medical books. When taken out of their original realities, displaced in a diaphanous universe of potential solutions, they are healed through a new and intimate, perhaps mystical reconnection with nature. These children act as beacons forcing us in their sensitivity to question our own identity and the way in which we experience our own place in this universe. They presented a unique beauty and dignity that hold my fascination to this day. “In 2000, I found an image of a girl who looked like a prophet to me, and she gave me the inspiration to start my Silent Children series. I replaced their handicaps with something beautiful and tried to heal them through an intimate and mystical connection to nature.” In 2001 Peretti’s Silent Children series was exhibited at Sylvia Schmidt Gallery, New Orleans, and later in 2005 at Galerie B, Sinzheim, Germany. She captured the essence of what she saw in medical photographs, removing the children from their clinical context and returning their dignity. “Children are prisoners in the sense that they don’t have a say in things, but they also carry our hopes. Despite their helplessness, they have a kind of vision and strength.” Peretti’s Silent Children appeared amid flowers, bees, animals, and water in an expressionistic mix of beauty, darkness, and mystery. She also investigates feral children—those raised with little or no contact with other people. “For some time now I have been fascinated by cases of feral children who were raised with little or no exposure to human beings. As my work hovers between fairy tales, dreams, and historic fact, I have created a body of work uniting these children within a universe sympathetic to their unique adapta- tions. Inherently alone, these feral children open our eyes through a mysterious sensibility we may have lost. They are immaculate in www.glashaus-magazin.de their innocence, transmitting a savage view of our own isolation, www.glasshouse.de our haunting distance to our own nature.” Her series, The Unusual Kind, was exhibited in 2009 at Gallery Bienvenu, New Orleans. Part dream, part fairy tale, these works resonated for reasons as mysterious as their subjects. While the idea of children raised by wolves and wild creatures is not new, Peretti GLASHAUS approached her subjects on a more psychological level, invoking a Internationales Magazin für Studioglas mystical union with nature that’s latent within all of us. The exhibition included a mixture of freestanding porcelain sculptures, etched translucent wall panels, and glass raindrop- shaped wall sculptures, all depicting children seemingly in a state of suspended animation. “The silence of the feral children hints at the delicate relationship between human civilization and the remaining wildness that lingers around us and within us.”

The Healing Power of Nature A Thin Silver Lining, Peretti’s 2010 Heller Gallery exhibition, further entrenched her use of multiple formats to uncover hidden worlds and connect her children to the healing powers of nature. K49413 EUR GLASHAUS / GLASSHOUSE 4/2013 7,50 The work for this show included wall panels, glass domes, cast glass busts, and a life-size reclining figure. Wall panels were created from GLASSHOUSE photographic images, engraving on glass or Plexiglas, drawings on tissue paper, and mirroring, a thin silver line used to connect both subject and viewer to nature. Tobias Hedwig Young Machiko Gerd Kammerer Emmert Masters Etchu Sonntag

www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 23 White glass set the tone for her 2012 Heller exhibition, Thaw, New Work to create a sense of peace, vulnerability, softness, and subtle depth. In February, Peretti prepared for her April 2014 exhibition at The children in this series appear to be awakening from a dormant Callan Contemporary Gallery in New Orleans, Louisiana. Though stage, and the inherent properties of the glass itself served Peretti’s working under pressure is not her ideal situation, the artist admits metaphors and magnified her message. The central piece of the that time constraints can aid in moving her contemplative process exhibition was Snow Child, a life-size reclining figure cast in white forward more quickly. The new series, a subtle transition from Thaw, glass. Multimedia collages such as Dew and The Hawk utilized contains both lost wax cast pieces utilizing a palette of white glass layered drawing, painting, and photographic images with engraving, with few traces of color as well as her layered panels. mirroring, and glass slumping. Through vast and varied layers, she She describes the spring exhibition as minimalistic, with fewer examined the child’s identity. but major pieces including two large-scale kiln cast works. The “My work today involves a more singular investigation through centerpiece will be a life-size girl figure surrounded by hawks. The sculptural forms of the sense of being human. To create the child in viewer has a sense that the girl is being guarded, but the imagery glass and to give this work a kind of life is a challenge. Thaw looks could also be interpreted as the girl being attacked. Peretti’s aesthetic at interior dialogues made present through an enlightened sensibility. signature of beauty and tension lives on in her latest works. Inspired by stories of the Snow Children, fairy tales in which the melting snow produces life, these new children reveal themselves Look for Subscriber Benefits coming to Subscribers Only via innocently awakening. With the Thaw comes the vision, and the links in upcoming e-mails from Glass Art. This Bonus Content will vision is the source of the work.” include additional information on Club S & S, Sibylle Peretti and Stephen Paul Day’s installations.

Sibylle Peretti www.sibylleperetti.com

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www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 25 International Glass Contemporary Glass Showcase

Crispin Heath, bird. Photo by Joan Soto.

Cathryn Shilling, Woven Chalice, Photo by Ester Segarra.

he Contemporary Glass Society (CGS) and National Glass Centre have joined to select artists for a new showcase of Tcontemporary glass art. A special display case at the Centre, Sunderland, England, will be dedicated to a year-long display of a wide variety of glass made by members of the Contemporary Stewart Hearn, oval incalmo bowls. Glass Society from Spring 2014 through mid-January 2015. Photo by Joan Soto. The showcase includes work ranging from elegant functional tableware to vibrant sculptural pieces. Each one is unique and available for sale. Featured artists include Catherine Keenan, Rachel Elliott, Stewart Hearn, Crispin Heath, Ingrid Hunter- Coddington, Keeryong Choi, Cathryn Shilling, Scott Benefield, Jonathan Harris, Max Lamb, and Philippa Beveridge. Four additional artists will be selected later this year for display during the first half of 2015. The showcases are the result of a collaboration between two of the U.K.’s top glass organizations. In 2014, CGS staged a major international conference “Glass Skills: Exploring the Fusion of Art and Technique” at National Glass Centre that cemented the Centre as a national hub for contemporary glass. This new collaboration is just the beginning of a commitment by both groups to work together to bring this magical medium to the widest audience possible.

Visit www.cgs.org.uk and www.nationalglasscentre.com for more information on these 2014 exhibitions.

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www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 27 Warm Glass Studio Profile

by Colleen Bryan

loria Badiner lives at the intersection of science and art and has forged a natural path between the two. The fused glass artist, Gtrained as a scientist before choosing a life in glass three decades ago. Now she makes commissioned and custom kiln formed glass for architects, designers, and furniture makers. Her work includes cast panels, high relief tiles, and site-specific sculptural installations. Her sculptures include fused, kiln cast, sand cast, and dalle de verre works on an intimate scale, often mixed with copper, silver, stone, bone, and found objects. Badiner’s studio, Arts & Artifacts, occupies two buildings and 1,200 square feet of clean, finished space on an 80-acre farm near Mattawan, in rural southwest Michigan. Her farm has been reforested with native plantings, now thriving after 35 years in the ground. A small creek runs through the property. A second-story “tree house,” where light filters through mature 40 foot trees, is the center for design, layout, and most of the fabrication. A 24-by-30- foot vaulted space with 12-foot ceilings houses a kiln room, some welding space, and loft storage for shipping materials. The studio hires two part-time workers to cut and wash glass Gloria Badiner, as well as wrap and pack artwork for shipping. A third person who corn necklace, occasionally helped with printing recently passed away, and her forged copper with absence still echoes for Badiner in the studio. pâte de verre. Themes and Artistic Expression The artist works in mixed Badiner’s scientific background informs the conceptual themes media, focusing her ideas of her art. Her current focus is on hunger in America and how our through a collage of materi- decisions to change our foodstuffs into fuel instead of feeding als and techniques. Themes people affects the prevalence of hunger. “I am passionate about of night and day, nature, and this. Some of the choices we make every day impact our whole human ritual are strongly society. Looking at such things with the eyes of a scientist makes woven throughout her work. me question those choices, and I push forth ideas with my imagery Recent three-dimensional that perhaps people haven’t considered. When a farmer decides to exhibitions of The Offering change a field to seed corn for ethanol rather than vegetables to feed show a series of kiln cast a community, it takes productive lands out of commission. Small bowls filled with cast, fused, choices are additive. What is good for the farmer right now may and found objects honoring not be good for the community or the country, and ultimately not the needs of humans for food, even good for the farmer. Sometimes people just need an example medicine, fire, family, art, to spark realization.” and creativity. Recent two- For a recent show, Badiner lampworked canning jars around dimensional works include a kiln cast corn and placed the jars on a wooden altar. She also makes series of cast glass panels for small panels, deep with different layers, color, and text incorporat- a waterfall wall installation and ing quotes or indexes. Beyond reliance solely on the charm of a a commission for an embassy in cast corn piece, the later show numerically what is happening with Washington, D.C. genetically modified organisms (GMOs). All of the pieces of the installation center on the corn motif and associated questions about GMOs, fuel, and food. Gloria Badiner, corn pâte de verre cast tile.

28 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com Gloria Badiner, Altar – Food for Thought, kiln formed glass in lampworked glass jars with walnut shelf. The Challenge of Gaining Visibility As a studio artist, Badiner feels the constant challenge to stay relevant as both a conceptual and practical reality. “Materials and fuel costs are huge. We have to compete with artists around the world for a shrinking number of gallery and museum slots. In the future, larger works that are singly my voice will have less and less opportunity to be seen. I think that trend will accel- erate. I’m trying to decide how I want to address that.” She sees the situation creating an imperative for marketing and getting her work out of the studio. “We all need to push ourselves out there. I also want to compile my own installation of the Hunger in America series and to have it professionally photographed and distributed as printed images.” Since the decline of galleries, the artist has to wear the hats of promoter and publisher. “I’m setting myself a two-year deadline for bringing in a professional photographer and self-publishing a book with interviews and writings from farmers, scientists, and people who deal with food issues in America.”

Architectural Glass Designs Badiner’s glass projects now split evenly between architectural glass and small decorative objects for residential use. The customer is very important to her, whether that customer is the design firm that has decided to bring art glass into their projects or the clients who will live with the finished pieces. “I need to know what direction they want to go in, what visually is important to them. I make a lot of samples and do on-site testing to see how the color is going to read in situ. I often interface with a team of professionals—the architect, Gloria Badiner, Cast Corn, billet cast glass. designer, and fabricator—to nail down a project. I try to draw them in, to show them what the materials can do.”

www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 29 In such an exchange, Badiner and her clients focus on overall Challenges with Architectural Glass building designs. “If there is a curtain wall [earth to sky glass] you One of the major challenges for architectural glass makers is can see a building without seeing what holds it together. There is an pushing the material’s boundaries beyond what has been thoroughly emphasis on systems that allow the glass to be integral to the build- tested. As a scientist, Badiner cautions others to proceed with care ing itself, letting more light and color into the space.” Laminating to avoid creating a potentially dangerous situation that damages high-texture glass panels allows them to serve safely for more uses. the artist’s reputation and that of the larger industry. For her part, One recent project was for the Ronald McDonald House in Badiner does not stop with simply doing her own research. She also Chicago, Illinois. Since a glass panel was going into a building with makes it a point to educate her customers. “Whether you are five or children, it required lamination. “Not many places laminate the kind 95 years old, you are going to get a little lesson in glass with one of glass I make.” The project had to be shipped to Oregon. I looked of my projects. It has been my experience that people like that. It at the laminator as my partner in the project.” Badiner warms to invests them in the glass they are getting.” the memory of working on that project. “With each partner, it was She tries to educate people in the building industries so that, always about building for the kids. It was a wonderful project to down the road, they’ll think of glass as a possibility for interior and work on.” exterior use more often in their designs. Educating the client requires an investment of time toward a payoff that may not be certain or immediate, Badiner acknowledges. “Glass isn’t going to be useful in every application. Sometimes their needs drive use of a different material.” Even so, the artist feels rewarded by the exchanges. “I like that opportunity for engagement and for using the material that I love working with. Every day is fun for me.” In her transition from scientist to self-employed artist, Badiner learned the importance of getting half of the payment in hand before starting a big project. “The person on the other side of a transaction needs to be as committed to the outcome as the artist is. Everything absolutely needs to be detailed and in writing rather than relying on a handshake.” Badiner relies on word of mouth to attract business to her studio. “I used to send portfolios to all of the area design firms, but that considerable effort didn’t generate any business. Now I send a flyer out three times a year to fill my classes. Beyond that, word of mouth keeps me busy. Over time, an artist develops a clientele of design firms you choose to work with.”

Gloria Badiner, lobby of the Ronald McDonald House installation in Chicago, Illinois, done in high-relief cast glass.

Gloria Badiner, Offering – Eat your Words, kiln formed bowl with applied transfers to fused tiles.

30 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com A Knowledgeable and Generous Teacher Badiner’s humble demeanor belies her reputation as a teacher, built up by the people who come away from her classes. They tout her wealth of knowledge and her skill and generosity in transmitting what she knows. From her own perspective, Badiner insists: “Teaching keeps me socialized. Once you’ve dedicated a space with all the equipment for making glass, it is a shame not to share it.” When students come to the studio, Badiner also sees them as customers and tries to devote herself totally to them. “They take their personal time to be here with me, and they deserve my full attention. I try to share all I can without holding back. Working to maintain good integrity with any project, whether it is making a night-light for a child’s room, an introductory class, or a wall of glass, this integrity is a cornerstone of how I’ve built my business.” Badiner teaches in her studio, turning her fabrication bench to double duty as a student workbench. Classes focus on small projects that can be finished to the point of firing in two to four hours. Badiner fires the pieces, and students return to pick them up later. As students mature out of those classes, they are invited to come for open studio time, where a fee gains them access to all the equipment. They can choose to fire on-site or take their work home to personal kilns. The studio also hosts four to eight students at a time in intensive workshops. Studio classes include fusing and slumping, mosaics, lampworked beadmaking and jewelry making, ceramics and tile working, and found-object artwork. Students hail from Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo, Michigan, and Northern Indiana. Gloria Badiner, Blue Sky, cast glass with printed images plus gelatin and iron transfer.

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www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 31 Gloria Badiner, Tablet – Food or Fuel, cast glass with gelatin and iron transfer.

Badiner leaves her studio to teach more intensive, professional Still, she recognizes that cost and competition place ever-greater level kiln forming workshops with vendors, schools, and universi- pressure on emerging artists. “You need to come out of school ties around the country. She conducts nearby community educa- with all your eggs in the basket—a business plan that lays out how tion classes for 15 to 20 people at a time. Once a year, the fine arts you’re going to finance striking out on your own and supporting program at a local high school hosts her for two weeks to present a yourself while you build up a business or whether you are going fusing/casting/slumping project to approximately 30 students. She to work for someone else for a while. You need a plan that is well enjoys both their eagerness and their energy. thought through and well detailed so you don’t get stuck.” She feels Whatever her classroom, Badiner maintains vendor and product the education of glass artists has burgeoned to help accomplish neutrality. “I don’t struggle with what to say in a classroom. If one that. “Students are well trained now with the expansion of glass material or color is of better use than another, I share that information arts programs and even PhDs. There is academic support now that with my students. When either fusible glass or plate glass would didn’t exist 15 years ago.” work in a project, I tell them that, because one is so much less expen- Badiner says that her tour of the last Sculpture, Objects, Func- sive than the other.” Manufacturers would love for studio teachers tional Art + Design show in Chicago during August 2013 reinforced to commit to their products and speak for them, but Badiner resists her conviction that general decorative arts are still a major calling those pressures. Having a choice, she feels, gives her students and in the world of American craft. Demand is building for more glass customers greater reason for confidence in her recommendations. tile and more high relief tile. Back home, she does not see demand trailing for either her products or her services. The artist is not plan- Artistic Self-Care ning any expansion, since she feels she has achieved good balance As a solo studio artist, Badiner finds it essential to establish with her commercial client base, her student base, and making her some way of incorporating an ongoing critique of one’s work. own work. Perhaps, she says, she would like to spend a little less That critique supports the artist’s efforts to stay fresh and relevant. time traveling in the future, freeing up more time to work the bench It also provides resources when one hits the inevitable dead ends every day. Having chosen a life for love of glass, Badiner is eager and does not know how to proceed. “There is no common journal to spend every spare moment in that labor. for glass studio artists, so being able to talk to peers is the best way to find a better material that someone else has tried using for a cer- Look for Subscriber Benefits coming to Subscribers Only via tain purpose. I always come home from a conference with at least links in upcoming e-mails from Glass Art. This Bonus Content will two new ideas that I can immediately put to work in my studio. In include more about how Gloria Badiner’s training and background discussing the subtleties of what we are doing, we inevitably draw as a scientist continues to inform her choices as a glass artist and out observations and ideas that are relevant.” open consulting opportunities within the glass industry. Badiner schedules herself for the annual Glass Art Society Con- ference (March 2014 in Chicago). The conference is a convergence of kiln formers, lampworkers, glassblowers, architectural artists, and the vendors who support the industry. The meeting features an emerging artist seminar/panel and a science lecture that brings together all the people in the industry. “I find it is a good setting for me to meet and talk with my peers and to learn and grow as an artist.” Having migrated to art from the fields of medicine and chemistry where everything is about having the appropriate degree, Badiner particularly appreciates that in glass it’s all about what you can do. “I feel so lucky to have been able to participate in the glass arts and be able to make my living this way.” Gloria Badiner, Owner Art & Artifacts Glass Studio 27326 County Road 364 Mattawan, Michigan 49071 Gloria Badiner, Spin to Win, (269) 668‑4137 cast glass with wood and rubber. [email protected] [email protected] © Copyright 2014 by Glass Art. tinyurl.com/gloriabadiner All rights reserved.

32 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com State of the ART Dichroic Glass

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www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 33 Skills and Techniques

Cast Glass Door Inserts, Part 1 Creating the Clay Mold Photos of small sample pieces by Harrison Photographic

Additional Photography by Cathy Coverley

Design, Fabrication, and Text by Cathy Coverley Tools and Materials Water-Based White Bodied Sculpture Clay fter seeing the cast glass art work in my studio, designer Doug 3/4"-Thick Waterproof Melamine Boards ADolezol asked me to create a bas-relief casting of a garden Web Strap #1 Pottery Plaster 200 Mesh Silica scene for the grand entrance of a Victorian residence in Atherton, N95 Respirator Mixing Container California. He was captivated by my deep relief castings. Dolezol Gerry’s Mold Mix Ceramic Cleanup Tool wanted the garden localized to the client’s northern California home Water Blaster Mold Drying Box (optional) in the Foothills. “Glass is the perfect fit for the aesthetic desires of the client and the physical demands of the door panels.” I accepted the challenge. Designing the cast glass in the bas-relief method and using Gerry Getting the Client Involved Newcomb’s Mold Mix as my investment allowed me to create a very I feel that glass is uniquely suited to create stories, and a garden is high relief scene where some elements, such as the architectural col- a very special place—it touches your imagination. In my rendering, umn in the garden, extend off the face of the panel by almost 1‑1/2". the wandering path, the ruined column, and the cool grotto provide The panels include a 1/2" lip that secures the glass into the doors. an invitation to the viewer to imagine themselves in a magical atmo- After the panels were laminated, that lip became 3/4" in thickness. sphere. The elegance of the finished panels, with their tremendous The two cast glass door inserts are each 12" wide and 43" tall, in a depth, underscore the special character of the home and protect the cathedral shape designed for a pair of 8-foot-tall solid walnut doors. privacy of the clients within. The clients loved my design, and to To begin, you will want to create a small segment of the de- make it even more specific, they requested that I include the Stanford sign in cast glass. This gives dish, a local landmark. the client a replica of the casting showing the glass colors and the 3-D of the bas-relief for their approval. I want the client to have a physical example they can hold in their hands that demonstrates what the finished piece will be like.

I also produced a miniature version of the piece to test the lamination process. I made a small 6" x 22" version of one of the panels to send to the laminator for a test to make sure the lamination process would result in a clear, perfect panel. This was also helpful in regard to calculating the required materials. Now on to creating the bas-relief panel.

34 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com Preliminary Steps As soon as the face coat starts to degloss, pour the mold mix Upon approval of the sample from the down the side of the mold to force the air bubbles to the surface. client, the next step is to make the model. You should have the mold mix ready to go and add enough Gerry’s In this particular case, a clay positive was mold mix to fill the mold box. Begin to vibrate the mix immediately. created. Layers of clay are carved and built You want to force the air bubbles to the surface. I shake the table, up until the desired result is achieved. but if you shake or tap too hard you can cause the clay positive to The cast glass door inserts will be the release from the bottom of the mold box and float in the mix. On exact replica of the clay positive. I used a a large-scale model like this it is most unlikely, but on a smaller water-based, white bodied sculpture clay. sized model it could be a problem. If you have a vacuum table, this I used boards and a webbed tie- is a little faster process. down strap to secure the mold box. The After the plaster sets up (approximately 30 minutes depending on 3/4"-thick waterproof melamine boards the temperature and the humidity), debox the mold and release the are 3‑3/4" longer and wider than the clay plaster mold from the bottom melamine with a light twist before it positive, and the width of the boards is is totally hard and stuck. With a ceramic cleanup tool, gently break 1" to 1‑1/2" deeper than the clay posi- the sharp edges of the mold to prevent chunks chipping off later tive. This gives a minimum 1" margin of space all around the clay when you are moving the mold in and out of the kiln. For this size positive. piece, I prepared the materials for each of the two-part investments Move the clay positive to a large ahead of time. I find it is very helpful to have an assistant to mix piece of melamine long enough and the mold mix while I am applying the face coat. Agitating the mix wide enough to accommodate the was much easier with an assistant. pre-strapped boards. If necessary, use clay to dam up the corners on Removing the Clay from the Mold the inside and secure the board to Carefully start in a corner, slightly away from the edge, so as not the bottom seam on the outside of to damage the plaster. Dig into the clay with the ceramic cleanup the boards. Now, the investment tool and lift, and the clay should come out in large sections. Save process begins. the clay, weigh it, and carve that number into the mold with your clay tool. Remove as much clay as possible from the design details The Two-Part Investment without digging in too deeply. The clay should come away easily I use a two-part investment. For without damaging any details in the plaster. the first layer of investment, known Use a water blaster to remove the rest. It will remove any little as the face coat or splash coat, I use bits of clay and clay residue from the surface of the mold. Now a 50/50 mix of #1 Pottery Plaster let it dry for the 1/2 hour or so that the water drains out. After the and 200 mesh silica. When preparing these materials, you need surface water is drained off, place the well-supported mold upside to wear an N95 respirator to protect yourself from inhaling any down on kiln furniture in your kiln and fire-dry. The alternative is particulates. to dry the mold in a mold drying box first, then fire it dry. This is a Since the volume of the water will double when the plaster little easier on your kiln, but I prefer to fire-dry the mold. compounds are added, be sure to choose an appropriate container. You are dealing with two types of water here. There is the ob- The approximate ratio of the face coat mix is 1 part water to 2 vious water you can feel, and there is the chemical water that has parts dry mixture (using the same container). to be burned out of the investment. Water left in the mold could Add the dry mixture to the water, gently sifting the plaster into cause the glass to explode later during firing if it is not burned out the water until you have a small mound in the center. Let the batch properly. Because the size of these panels exceeded the capacity of slake (hydrate) for 2 minutes before gently agitating. Do not my kiln, I rented a kiln from another artist. That meant that I had to stir! The ratio of plaster to water should produce a creamy, smooth transport the molds to another location before firing. texture that is runny like cream when it’s properly combined. It can be applied by splashing it onto the surface of the clay positive, or it can be poured gently over the surface. You want to cover the entire surface of the clay without trapping any air bubbles against the clay. Clean the face coat away from the outside edge of the mold box. It is soft, and if left there, it may cause the edges of the mold to break off. The face coat should be approximately 1/8" thick over the surface of the clay to preserve all of the little details. For the second layer (the backup layer), I used Gerry’s Mold Mix. This gives strength to the mold, since it contains fiberglass threads, is fairly reasonable in cost, and allows for some undercuts. The approximate ratio of the mold mix is 1 part water to 3 parts dry mixture. (I use a one-pound coffee can to measure.) The consistency of the mix should be like heavy cream to yogurt. You may stir the dry ingredients immediately into the mix.

www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 35 Here is the schedule that I used to dry the molds, which are 17" wide x 48" long x 3-1/2" deep. A smaller mold would take less time.

Firing Schedule for Drying the Mold Segment 1: Ramp 133°F/hr to 200°F and hold 15 hrs. Segment 2: Ramp 50°F/hr to 400°F and Off.

Look for Part 2 on molding the glass panels in the July/August 2014 issue of Glass Art.

Sibylle Peretti

Look for these May/June 2014 Subscriber Benefits Articles in E-mails from Glass Art!

Be sure we have your current e-mail address Photo of finished doors by David Duncan. so you won’t miss this extra value offered to subscribers only.

Working Greener Cathy Coverley discovered stained glass Eco-Friendly Practices in The Crucible’s in 1972 and by 1974 had opened Phoenix Hot Shop Glass, where she continues to produce residential, commercial, and public art Club S & S commissions. She has studied with many Sibylle Peretti and Stephen Paul Day’s Installations Glass Art famous glass artists and served as TA for Kathleen Sheard and Gerry Newcomb at Gloria Badiner Subscriber Corning Museum’s Studio and as Artist in Drawing from a Scientific Residence at Uroboros Glass Studios. She, in turn, shares Background to Enrich Benefits her own knowledge in glass fabrication, fusing and slump- Glass Art ing, and casting. Charitable Pipes Coverley’s work can be found in museums, businesses, Evolving Models of Philanthropy and private collections, and has been featured in Glass Art, Stained Glass Quarterly, and San Diego Home & Garden Dan Hohl magazines, as well as Kay Bain Weiner’s book, Creative De- Following Where the Customer Leads signing. Her Wind & Shadow dichroic glass and aluminum kinetic “Urban Tree” sculpture is currently on display in www.GlassArtMagazine.com Imperial Beach, California, at the Marina Village Recre- [email protected] ation Center. 800.719.0769 502.222.5631 © Copyright 2014 by Glass Art. Bio photo by Dale Frost. All rights reserved.

36 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com NORTEL NORTEL NORTEL MANUFACTURING MANUFACTURING MANUFACTURING LIMITED LIMITED LIMITED Glassworking Glassworking Glassworking Burners and Torches Burners and Torches Burners and Torches Bench Burners Bench Burners Bench Burners Major • Midrange Major • Midrange Major • Midrange Minor • Mega Minor • Midrange Plus Minor • Mega Minor • Midrange Plus Minor • Mega Minor • Midrange Plus Red Max • Rocket Red Max • Rocket Red Max • Rocket New New New MEGA MINOR MEGA MINOR MEGA MINOR BENCH BURNER BENCH BURNER BENCH BURNER

Eric Markow (left) and Thom Norris (right) with their Paragon Pearl-56. Eric and Thom spent several years de- veloping the woven glass technique shown above. Photo by Marni Harker. photography: dougbaldwinphoto.com photography: dougbaldwinphoto.com “Wephotography: dougbaldwinphoto.com love the even, consistent heat

RED MAX RED MAX ofRED the MAX Paragon Pearl-56” BENCH BURNER BENCH BURNER BENCH— MarkowBURNER & Norris Minor Surface mix Minor Surface mix Minor Surface mix Eric Markow and Thom Norris are or Premix Topfire or Premix Topfire or Premix Topfire noted for creating woven glass kimonos, which have been called “impossibly beautiful.” The kimonos weigh an average of 125 pounds. Eric and Thom fire their glass in nine Paragon kilns. “Now that we’ve done all our testing, and have actually cooked sculpture in the Pearl-56, it is our favorite kiln and we love the even, consistent heat,” they said recently. The Pearl-56 has elements in the top, Hand Torches Hand Torches sidewalls, and floor.Hand The Torches kiln uses ad- Multimix • Unitorch Multimix • Unitorch vanced powerMultimix ratio technology • Unitorch to balance the heat between the top and bottom sec- Twinfuel • Ranger Twinfuel • Ranger Twinfuel • Ranger tions in increments of 10%. Compare these features: Compare these features: The digitalCompare Pearl-56 these has lockable features: cast- • Precision needle valves • Precision needle valves ers, levelers,• twoPrecision peepholes needle in thevalves front, for smooth control for smooth control two vent holes infor the smooth top, mercury control relays, • Red Max or Red Rocket • Red Max or Red Rocket and a ceramic• Red fiber Max lid. or The Red Pearl-56 Rocket fir - available for foot pedal use available for foot pedal use ing chamberavailable is 30” wide, for 56”foot long, pedal and use 16 Autumn Sunset Kimono by Markow & Norris. The part- ½” deep (top to bottom). ners fire their glass in Paragon kilns. Photo by Javier In the USA, contact your local In the USA, contact your local In the USA, contact your local Agostinelli. Glass Art Distributor. Glass Art Distributor. If you are notGlass yet readyArt Distributor. for the massive Constantly finding ways to Pearl-56, then choose the exact size make better kilns. 2040 Ellesmere Road, Bldg 18 2040 Ellesmere Road, Bldg 18 Paragon2040 kiln Ellesmere that you need. Road, We Bldg offer a18 Toronto, Ontario Toronto, Ontario full range of glassToronto, kilns fromOntario the small FireFly to the intermediate Fusion and 2011 South Town East Blvd., M1H 3B6 Canada M1H 3B6 Canada M1H 3B6 Canada Mesquite, Texas 75149-1122 CS clamshells to the Ovation ovals. Phone: 416-438-3325 Phone: 416-438-3325 Phone: 416-438-3325 800-876-4328 / 972-288-7557 Fax: 416-438 7140 Fax: 416-438 7140 For more informationFax: 416-438 on these7140 excit- Toll Free Fax 888-222-6450 ing kilns, see your distributor, or call us www.paragonweb.com www.nortelmfg.com www.nortelmfg.com for a freewww.nortelmfg.com catalog. [email protected]

www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 37 Marketing Keep Your Business Eyes and Ears Open

by Mark Veit

n past articles, I have written about the importance of building a strong social media and online foundation to promote both you Iand your glass art business. That is a must these days, and there is no replacement for it. Oftentimes, though, artists get so caught up in social media that business opportunities are passing them by right in their local communities. How many times have you signed in to Facebook with every Horse beads by Joy Munshower. intention of only spending a few minutes there, when all of a sud- Photos by David Orr Photography LLC. den, you look up and it is 90 minutes later. I am guilty of that as much as anyone. In fact, I have checked Facebook twice in the Small businesses themselves are becoming savvy marketers time it has taken me to write these first six sentences. Not good. I by teaming up with each other to create larger events. Teaming up am starting to think I might need some help. Don’t get me wrong. with other small businesses in your area allows you access to their Spending time online is very important for your business. But if customer base. This is a great way to get warm leads to see your we can be more efficient online and create just a little more time to artwork and increase your own database of potential customers. For get involved locally, the rewards can be great. example, let’s put together an event with three businesses that are common in almost every town. The first business is yours. You make Mutual Benefits for Small Business beautiful glass art in your home studio, and you have a great social Be sure to keep your eyes and ears open for local events or local media following. You don’t, however, have a brick-and-mortar store businesses that could benefit from your glass art and vice versa. where you can display your work in your local community. Enter There are affordable ways to get your work seen by new potential business number two. Every town has a hair salon, a book store, customers in your community. You may read about opportunities a clothing boutique, and other such small enterprises. What if you in the local newspaper or overhear someone mentioning something approached one of those shops and suggested a combined effort to in the grocery store. Stay alert and don’t be afraid to throw yourself bring as many people as possible to their store? Nine times out of into an opportunity that you might not normally take advantage of. ten, the owners will hear you out. Local support is just as important as online support for long-term Local businesses survive or fail based on the number of custom- success. If you take the initiative to get involved periodically, you ers who walk through their doors. If you can offer them the value are exposing your art to more potential customers. of new potential customers, they will jump at the chance. At least I equate social media use and advertising to fishing with a wide I would. Collaborate on an event, big or small, and work together net. I can reach far more potential customers online than I ever could to market that event to as many locals as possible. hope to locally, and I can do it all myself on a low budget. This is obviously important. Just don’t underestimate the market for your Courting Clientele work right in your own community. In fact, it is my experience that How are you going to get the word out? Make fliers for the shop cities and towns are working very hard to promote small businesses owner to hand out and display. Both you and the shop owner should in their areas. talk about the event on social media. Both you and the shop owner should send e-mails to those in your existing databases. Don’t be afraid to get creative. In exchange for your help with the event, you are getting a place to showcase your glass art to the local public as well as the potential new clients whom shop owner will bring in. It is a win-win for both parties. Although we are putting together an event with three local businesses, you can stop with two if you like. You may want to get your feet wet with a smaller event first to see how you like it, or maybe you work better with just one partner. This is all perfectly fine. The goal of doing something like this is to shake things up and expose your work to new people. By putting forth the effort and helping another local business promote itself with a successful event, people will take notice and you can begin to build a solid resume that will create future opportunities for your business.

38 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com Finding the Perfect Third Partner You have the location and general idea of what your event will entail. Now think strategically of a third business that can bring something to the table . . . food and drink! Fused glass art goes well with the unique clothes of a local boutique or manicures at the local salon, but refreshments would round out a great night, and they go with everything. Is there a local bakery, deli, coffee house, or res- taurant that would want to capitalize on the publicity of the event? The offer of free publicity goes a long way in recruiting business partners for an event such as this. Don’t be afraid to use it. And don’t forget that the business supplying the food will advertise the event to all of its own patrons as well, which will bring that many more people through the doors for both you and the shop owner. You can go as big or as intimate as you want with the event. Just be sure that you and the other participating businesses are clear on how all of the responsibilities will be divided beforehand. It will take a team effort to organize a successful event, and you will want to work with people who you know will follow through. Have a good time at the event. That’s easier said than done, but it’s something to be proud of, and potential customers will pick up on the positive vibes. Also collect as many e-mail addresses as possible to build your e-mail database for future sales and events. Finally, when all is said and done, be sure to properly thank the businesses you worked with and let them know that you are open to working with them again for future events.

Mark Veit currently owns and operates www.aaeglass,com along with partners Tanya and John Veit. They create enamel waterslide decals for glass artists and sell them on their website along with unique silver settings for glass. They also wholesale their fused glass jewelry to galleries and boutiques. Constantly attending workshops, seminars, and classes with master artisans helps Veit and his partners evolve their work and makes it possible for them to offer glass and jewelry artists a unique medium to maximize their sales. Visit www.aaeglass.com or e-mail [email protected] for more information.

www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 39 Philanthropic Glass Charitable Pipes

by Colleen Bryan Photos for The Glassroots Guild and the Armadillo Glass Initiative by Phoebe Guenzel Photography Photo for The Michigan Glass Project by Owen Strzelewicz

heir mission statements span much of the Midwest and Western United States and read of a hunger for connection: T “Create an environment that will help build community and relationships throughout artistic culture and spread awareness of the glassblowing art by hosting philanthropic projects and events.” “Glass for the Greater Good” “Unite the artistic glass community through charitable events that showcase the talent and culture of Michigan.” “Promoting Growth in the Glass Age” “Benefit local charities through live glassblowing events showcasing the talents and culture of Texas.” “Building awareness and relationships throughout the artistic glass community and beyond.” Who would guess that these are the ambitions of glass pipe makers, who sometimes describe themselves as hyperactive adrenaline junkies thriving on the countercultural fringes of the glass world? But while that image may capture the feverish energy of the process, it fails to communicate the range of people who are involved in lampworking today—young people in dreadlocks and T-shirts, surely, but also people with graduate degrees and precision workers with scientific technical training. Then there are the parents who leave the torch for PTA duties; artists of acclaim from other genres; citizen frontiersmen working to help failing cities recover, reopen, and renew; clean-cut businessmen following the money. The artists are predominantly young, but with a few gray-hairs. They are predominantly male, but ever more female. Increasingly, these lampworkers are demanding a place in the heart of the mainstream culture. And their chosen means of advancing those demands? Philanthropy.

Why Pipes? Torchwork is located on the high-energy, feverishly intense end of the glassmaking gamut. Lampworkers produce scientific glass, fine art, beads and jewelry, and pipes. Much of the scientific glass has migrated overseas and to acrylic. The glass pipe market generates more raw revenue than fine art and jewelry combined. According to Sean Mueller, founder of the Colorado Project, “Many lampworkers turned to making pipes for financial reasons. Of all lampworked products, pipes offer the most reliable income. They generate more revenue, interest, and energy than any other facet of the lampworking industry.”

Bishop and Kind collaboration, The Armadillo Art Glass Initiative.

40 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com Pipe making requires a high degree of personal energy, good Glass pipe makers have labored away since the 1980s outside the visual-motor integration, a complex and curious mind, and a high mainstream culture. As they become more skilled, their experimen- tolerance for risk and failure. Mueller describes the feedback loop tation with materials and techniques creates a demand that drives between the genre and the societal response. innovation throughout the glass art industry, particularly for color “The craft itself presents many barriers to entry. Materials are rods. Now some pipe makers are gaining grudging acknowledge- expensive. The artist works intensely for hours and days on an in- ment for their elaborate and innovative modern glass art. Their tricate piece, then it breaks. You get burned. The craft is technically pieces are being priced at and selling to collectors for $5,000, difficult, and it takes a long time to become any good. The more $10,000, and $20,000. The artists are eager to bring their artwork you turn, the better your skills. The more you innovate, the higher out of the shadows into the public light and to be appreciated for prices your products command. Pipe makers work hard to innovate both the artistry and humanity they represent. in a most difficult medium. Once there, you get beat up by people who perceive you and your art as degenerate.” The Origin of Regional Projects But the niche has a major problem. The 1990s era interpretation Lampworkers are addressing these goals by orchestrating ma- of federal law classifies glass pipes as drug paraphernalia and as- jor philanthropic events and donating net proceeds to mainstream cribes their makers to the shadowy edges of legality. Public opinion community charities. A handful of local projects since 2010 have and the enforcement of laws are shifting, but not enough to create raised upwards of $50,000 a year in donations to local playgrounds, certainty for the industry. Furthermore, according to Mueller, “Fine food banks, a senior meals program, restoration of an iconic public art shows tend to not acknowledge pipe making, as though blow- building, scholarships to a glass art school, catastrophic medical ing pipes is not real glassblowing.” Few glass pipes are displayed bills, fire fighters, flood relief, and more. Glass Art interviewed a in galleries . . . yet. But heady glass is beginning to surface in art number of pipe makers and collectors from around the country to books and national competitions. learn about the origins of this approach, how the events are structured, and how the design of the events has shifted with experience. All tellers attribute the concept of regional pipe projects to Sean Mueller—formerly of Denver, Colo- rado, and currently of Detroit, Michigan—who de- veloped the model under the name the Colorado Project. Mueller has a background in corporate psychology and in scientific glassblowing. As a lampworking hobbyist, he connected to both artistic and scientific communities and through them to “the whole borosilicate scene.”

Elbo and Joe Peters collaboration, The Glassroots Guild.

Joe Peters

www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 41 On a visit to the Glass Craft & Bead Expo in Las Vegas, Nevada, ers. Mueller formed a 501(c)3 tax exempt nonprofit for the group. Mueller found more than a dozen lampworkers from Colorado, In 2010, with monthly parties bringing in more than 100 people, the but each of them was working in fair isolation from the others. He group switched the object of their fundraising to a food bank and left the show determined to create a began planning a major three-day event for the Colorado summer. regional space where Colorado lamp- Mueller contacted a local high-end glass gallery in the swanky workers could build a close and sup- Cherry Creek shopping district and engaged the owner to help de- portive community. The human need sign a highly saleable main item for the event. This collaboration to seek community, the competitive and a core theme fueled momentum, and the artists produced a urge to push the boundaries of what is main project and many smaller pieces. “We rented a warehouse in cool, the need to work together toward North Denver, set up a generator and 20 torches, kilns, tables, and a common good—this was the moti- a small amount of vending. We marketed the event and drew 500 to vational boost that drove the design of 700 people. Two months later we staged the silent auction at Pismo the Colorado Project. Gallery and raised $20,000 for the Food Bank of the Rockies.” In late 2009 Mueller and three By the summer of 2011, Mueller prepared to leave Colorado to other Denver lampworkers met to move his family to Detroit and turned the project over to Kristina talk about how to advance Mueller’s Sasser. Mueller opened a branch of Glasscraft in Detroit and man- goal. Several aspects of an action plan aged it for a while, consulting with other national projects before emerged: 1. Get regional lampworkers being wooed away to work for a logistics company. Although Muel- together regularly in small parties. ler says he only blows glass as a hobby now, he is broadly credited 2. Give them an opportunity to work and fondly remembered for his key role in imagining lampworking side by side at the torch, learn from as a philanthropic enterprise. each other, and improve their skills. 3. Use the glass itself to draw in the Proliferation larger public and generate revenue for The Colorado Project continues to operate as a regular oppor- philanthropy. tunity for lampworkers to gather at their torches and to sell glass at The team began to organize small major trade shows, on Facebook, and in silent auctions. In February parties and invite local pipe makers. 2014, the project established a permanent work site on the hill in An initial party where they anticipated Boulder. Colorado. Their Facebook page notes that proceeds from 10 or 15 attendees drew 50. The par- their sales since 2012 have gone to a medical recovery fund for a ties grew to monthly meetings with family member of a fellow glassworker, Colorado flood relief, and eight torches, food, and beer. Muel- Denver firefighters. ler enlisted suppliers and vendors to donate materials and promotions, and the attendees created lots of glass to sell in silent auctions. The first auction in 2009 raised a modest amount of money to benefit Learning Landscapes, an enterprise to rebuild playgrounds for Denver Public Schools. The glass auction built a base of collaboration among the lampwork-

Craig Lewis and Doug Zolbert collaboration, The Glassroots Guild.

Craig Lewis

42 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com Toyo Supercutter® Series

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www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 43 Other regional projects sprang up following the Colorado Proj- ect. Some use the Colorado template, often modifying it to reflect learning. All set their goals and approaches to integrate projects into the values, character, resources, and needs of their specific regions. Since 2010, the Oregon Project, under the leadership of Darby and Lila Holm, reports raising $10,000 in cash donations and more in donated goods. Their donations fund annual toy drives at a local children’s hospital, a food bank, and Japanese tsunami relief. In 2011, the Arizona Project, founded by Matt Bain, Karl Taylor, Micah Blatt, and Calvin Mickle and roughly following the Colorado template, ran an event in conjunction with the Best Bead Show, the Tucson Gem Show, and the Tucson Flame Off. Their donations since that time have gone to help fellow glassblowers with medical bills and provide economically challenged children with art classes at the local Sonoran Art Glass Academy. They also support charities Gem glass, related to children’s medical rehabilitation. The Glassroots Guild. Allison Key, in consultation with Mueller, co-founded the Michigan Glass Project in 2012 and adjusted the model to fit the specific needs and challenges for the struggling city of Detroit. Hosting big-name glassblowers and engaging a host of other visual, sound, and food artists helped the group earn $12,000 in 2012 and the same again in 2013, which contributed to reopening the city’s Belle Isle Aquarium. The Evergreen State Project is a nonprofit organization founded in 2012 by Justin Wilson, owner of nine Piece of Mind head shops in the Pacific Northwest. The project holds charitable events that showcase the talent and culture of Washington State and raise money for charities like Holy Family Hospital Children’s Center. The Glassroots Guild, run by Nick and Mary Lou Deviley in Madison, Wisconsin, along with the organizational talents of Allison Key, holds a live flameworking event to raise money for Second Harvest Food Bank of Southeastern Wisconsin. Nick Deviley, a self-described collector and flameworking distributor, rented a Frank Lloyd Wright building in the heart of Downtown Madison for his Glassroots trade show, and the guild event took place on the same Salt and Kind collaboration, site concurrent with the show. “We did a live auction where seven The Armadillo Art Glass Initiative. pipes sold in 20 minutes to raise $14,000 and a single pendant sold for $1,300. It felt good to hand over a check for $15,000 to Second Harvest. They are the biggest fundraisers in Madison and are coming to set up a booth at our 2014 event.” The Armadillo Art Glass Initiative (aka The Initiative), spurred by Deviley and founded by Craig Lewis in Austin, Texas, adopted a business model for its initial enterprise in 2013. The Initiative holds its three-day, multifaceted event on the same space immediately pre- ceding the Glassroots Austin spring trade show. The Initiative raised $16,255 for Meals on Wheels and More of Austin at its 2013 event.

The Essential Elements of a Project The projects are uniquely tailored for their particular regions. Each has evolved with experience, so it is not a simple thing to state the essential elements of a project. • All of the projects are consortia of lampworkers focused on making pipes and using the glasswork to generate revenue for philanthropy. Craig Lewis, commenting on the emotional connection that spurs the efforts, says: “Glassblowers have spent a long time on the outskirts Salt of a society that doesn’t want to know we are there. That creates a bond with people in need, like the poor or elderly whom society might also want to forget.”

44 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Expert Webinars™ Miss a Webinar? No Problem! You can learn the exciting techniques shared by renowned glass artists in our Webinars with our Glass Expert Webinars™ Data DVDs. The comments below demonstrate the acclaim our Webinars have received from participants around the world. Browse the list to find your favorite artist and start adding new skills to your art glass arsenal today!

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www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 45 The Michigan Glass Project 2012.

• Some are loosely structured nonprofits, some are 501(c)3 organiza- Sponsors tions with a president and board of directors, and others are moving The projects have a tight social network among themselves and toward business models. The Arizona Project started out initially with their sponsors. Deviley of Glassroots has sponsored or donated piggybacking off an existing 501(c)3. to all of the projects, given counsel to their leadership, and bought • Several rely on industry sponsors to donate materials and supplies collectables from them. Companies including Northstar Glassworks, and cover the bulk of expenses. That way, the time and creative TAG, Glass Alchemy, Golden Gate Glassworks, Glasscraft, Moun- work of the lampworkers can be donated more fully to the charity. tail Glass Arts, Blast Shield, Skutt, Paragon, The Flow, Hot Breath, • Some events are large three-day extravaganzas with a host of and North Jersey Diamond Wheel show up in several sponsorship smaller parties surrounding the exhibition dates, while others host a lists amid the names of countless smoke shops and glass galleries. number of smaller pipe blowing opportunities throughout the year. The Wall Street Journal reports an estimated 12,000 smoke • The success of project events is boosted when prominent artists are shops, glass galleries, and head shops in the United States. With attending and when the events are scheduled to follow glass-related state laws changing and federal interpretations softening, one can shows aimed at broader target audiences. Projects reported staging only guess that events such as the glass pipe projects will continue their activities to bridge Glassroots, the Best Bead Show and the Tuc- to thrive and might help bring glassblowers back into the heart of son Flame Off, American Glass Exposition (AGE), and CHAMPS. the larger community. Key remembers: “Because the Glass Art Society conference was held in Toledo [Ohio] the year of our first event—and Toledo was 45 minutes from Detroit—we gained access to people who might Upcoming Events Open to the Public not have otherwise come. Robert Mickelsen, Paul Trautman, and May 10–11, 2014 — The Armadillo Art Glass Initiative Bob Snodgrass all participated in our first event. Micklesen and June 6–8, 2014 — The Michigan Glass Project Adam Grafuis collaborated on a pipe that sold for $5,000 and that October 6–8, 2014 — The Glassroots Guild, Madison, WI anchored our $12,000 donation at the end of the show.” • Most events incorporate on-site pipe making, so the drama and fascination of the process becomes part of the public draw. Look for Subscriber Benefits coming to Subscribers Only via • Some events feature pipes exclusively, and others stratify activities links in upcoming e-mails from Glass Art. This Bonus Content will between pipes and a range of other lampworked items. compare how an early model for project events differs from later • Some charge entry fees for every event-related activity, while oth- business models and discuss what various projects have learned ers limit attendance fees for the public. Some require glassblowers from their experiences. to donate a minimum amount of glasswork for the silent auction as a condition of attending or vending. • Glass sales take place on-site at the events, in secondary silent auctions, over Facebook, and at subsequent trade shows. Practices © Copyright 2014 by Glass Art. restricting sales are a major area of learning. All rights reserved.

46 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Expert Webinars™ Saw Blades and Replacement Parts ... IN STOCK ... NO WAITING! No traveling Required! Choose from blades and parts for the following saws: Gemini Taurus II.2 Gemini Taurus 3 Take your glass creations to a higher level with unique tips and techniques from the glass industry’s leading Gemini Apollo Gryphon Omni-2 Plus+ instructors. Recently added Don’t Data DVDs are included in pull your hair the following list! out while waiting for your current supplier to send you the parts that Gryphon Zephyr Gryphon C-40 Webinar Data DVDs you need for your glass saw. We have the parts in stock and ready now available for: to ship. Most orders are delivered in 2-3 • Tanya Veit business days anywhere in the US. • Petra Kaiser • David Alcala • Peggy Pettigrew Stewart • Margo Clark and Dr. Saulius Jankauskas Sign up for our semi-monthly email newsletter and we’ll be happy to send a copy of our CD-rom catalog to you. Loaded with more than just products – you’ll ﬁ nd hundreds of free patterns, Spectrum’s Score mini-magazine, hot glass tips, glass history and MORE! • Denny Berkery 111 Industrial Parkway www.SunshineGlass.com Toll-free: 800-828-7159 • Cathy Claycomb Buffalo NY 14227-2712 A quality-conscious supplier! [email protected] • Kent Lauer • Lisa St. Martin • Tony Glander Stan dreams big ... • Dennis Brady Stan thinks big ... • Jackie Truty Now, Stan can create BIG! • Michael Dupille • Randy Wardell • Peter McGrain • Milon Townsend • Brent Graber • Joe Porcelli

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www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 47 Retailer Profile Dan Hohl A Retailer at Heart

by Colleen Bryan

an Hohl loves retailing to stained glass hobbyists.D From an early position as a supervisor for an upscale women’s ready- Customer Service First to-wear store, he responded to an ad for a stained glass As a retailer, Hohl prioritizes service first, selection second, and retail store. He then spent three years managing Delphi franchises price third. His biggest challenge is from online competition. Regret- and two years as a merchandise manager for the leading stained tably, Hohl has no remaining brick-and-mortar retail competition glass distributor. These experiences gave Hohl the information and left in Raleigh. “Three years ago we had five stores. Now only my confidence to start his own enterprise in 1985. store and another in Durham remain.” The most recent Christmas “I used to visit franchisees and tell them how to make a profit workshop drew a customer from 120 miles away who drove in and on what they already knew how to do. Together, we would set up stayed overnight with a friend. stores and operations to appeal to the hobby craft market. Finally, The model of response Hohl chose to meet Internet competition I took some friends’ advice and encouragement to put everything I is reminiscent of Miracle on 34th Street. “I keep my eye on servic- had learned to work in my own store.” ing every customer properly. If I know where they can find what Now, after nearly 30 years as a stained glass retailer, Hohl has they want, I tell them. My philosophy is that if I can’t make a sale many observations about selecting locations, translating customer today, good service will help me make a sale tomorrow. I am proud service into competitive advantage, selecting inventory, and reading to offer the best service in town. My customers are loyal, and they the horizon for weather in the market. check in with us every time they do a panel.” Good customer service requires dependable staff, and Hohl is Choosing a Location savvy enough to value his. One full-time employee has worked at In choosing where to locate his retail store, Hohl had one leading the store for 29 years. A part-time worker volunteers at the store criterion: “I chose Raleigh [North Carolina] because it was a capital in exchange for being able to use the equipment to make his own city.” Capital cities have state and local governments, universities, projects. This situation has suited him for nearly a decade. and medical centers. Having grown up in Detroit and run stores for Part of exceptional service is helping customers choose colors. Delphi in Lansing, Michigan, and Indianapolis, Indiana, Hohl was Hohl finds his experience as a buyer for women’s wear was great convinced that capital cities were recession proof. Other criteria preparation for that task. He sometimes gets calls from wives included warmer weather, green grass, history, and a high quality ahead of their spouses arriving at the store to begin a new project. of life. With those parameters identified, Hohl began his research. “Don’t you dare let my husband pick the colors, Dan. You know Raleigh attracts technology companies to its educational base what my living room looks like. Make sure you steer him in the and large engineering and medical science centers. Many young right direction.” people move to Raleigh from the East Coast and Northern cities, Good customer service translates to practical choices about store as well as the over-55 crowd, who come to be with their grandkids layout and packaging. “I sell people enough glass to meet their need and look for engaging hobbies to pursue. for a given project. I don’t want them to buy lots of excess glass, “In 1985, when I moved here, Raleigh was touted as the “Silicon because then the hobby becomes expensive and they drop it. When Valley of the East.” It was a prosperous boomtown, among the top I watch out for my customers’ backs, they return.” five places where people wanted to move.” Hohl bought a store that Hohl recalls a stepping-stone project for which the Raleigh was operating as a Delphi franchise. After six months, he cancelled Stained Glass Center’s receipt came to $42. By chance, the customer the franchise and became an independent retailer. had first visited another store, where staff insisted he would need Raleigh Stained Glass Center is located in North Raleigh, a mile $150 of materials for the same project. “When the customer saw the off of a beltline highway that surrounds the city. The 1,600-square- price difference, he stopped going to the other store and switched foot store has large windows, signage, and awnings, and sits on an to me.” Hohl reports that his commitment to customer service active street in one of several successive strip malls. Hohl considers feeds a reciprocal investment in his continued business health. My it a destination store and makes decisions about advertising, class customers will say, “We want you to make a profit, Dan. We want offerings, and inventory that reflect that classification. you here tomorrow.”

48 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com Hohl’s store also includes space for his customers to form a “I get more calls for church work, which indicates that demand sense of community. His back room functions like the front porch for ecclesiastical stained glass is building again. I send all of those of an old mom-and-pop store, where customers feel welcome to inquiries to a studio in the area that has been doing church windows hang out and swap stories. since the 1970s. I cater to the hobby market, which is holding its Summing things up, Hohl observes, “The typical stained glass own. There is enough business for all of us to share.” customer is college-educated and owns her own home. In all hob- Fusing was big when Hohl ran the store in Michigan. He set up bies there is an expense. They know that, but they don’t want to his Raleigh store in the mid 1980s with 25 percent of the stock in be gouged. They are also smart enough to recognize when you are fusing, kilns, and related supplies. “I couldn’t give it away.” After taking advantage of them. So don’t.” some years’ hiatus, he started again in 2000 to gradually build up his fusing inventory and now maintains about 25 percent of his Changing Markets, Changing Products stock in fusing, but most of his sales, by far, relate to stained glass. For the first few years in his Raleigh store, Hohl operated a Within stained glass retail, the product has shifted. Small strictly retail operation, fueling the hobby of stained glass through suncatchers that were bread-and-butter items a few decades ago the sale of classes and materials, and referring custom work between lost all traction as the market was flooded with Chinese goods, his customers. Eventually, he responded to demand to offer studio and Hohl stopped carrying them altogether. He detects changing and custom work from his store. Today 75 percent of Hohl’s revenue attitudes toward mass-produced inferior goods, however, as cus- comes from retail sales, and the remaining 25 percent is comprised tomers become aware of the high cost of shipping with of custom and repair work. Internet sales. “We are beginning to For a while, Raleigh Stained Glass Center specialized in creating see another resurgence of American- the Wow! panel that would sell a spec home. When banks stopped made and handmade crafted goods. loaning money, however, that segment of the market dried up. “I My custom business is picking up, and used to do two or three new homes each month. Through the reces- I have a plateful of orders for the com- sion, I was lucky to make panels for one new home a year.” Despite ing months.” the fact that Raleigh housing lost only 20 to 25 percent of its value (nothing compared to other more crippled housing markets) the impact on that portion of Hohl’s business was devastating. What held strength was the demand for remodeling plus kitchen and bath work. From where Hohl sits, the only noticeable slump in demand for stained glass came with the collapse of the building trades. When money flowed freely, all public buildings, even malls, commissioned artwork or sculpture as part of the building project. That does not happen anymore. “When one only has money for the basics, there is nothing left for the sugar.” Hohl sees evidence, however, that stained glass is recovering its place in large architectural projects as well as in the smaller hobby market.

www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 49 Repairs Hohl’s least loved but wholly reliable source of work is repair work. It comprises 15 percent of his business. Every day brings in more Chinese lamps and panels that have been broken for five years that people have finally decided to get repaired. “Other studios in town all buy materials from me, but they won’t do any repair work. Repair is the hardest line of business. You’re often cleaning up a poorly done original, and it is not at all creative. You never see a decent profit from it. But it has to be done, and that work falls to me.” Why not just turn the jobs away as other studios do? Hohl says that would cut against the grain of his core philosophy. “My job is to build the art and craft of stained glass by having people appreciate and want to work in glass. Much of the broken stuff that comes in the door is heirloom broken stuff. When I say no, I diminish my goal.” Hohl appreciates those of his customers and colleagues who drop by and offer to help get repairs out the door. Occasionally, a surprise in a repair job redeems the days of scut work. From his years with Delphi in Indianapolis, Hohl remembers a customer who had a distinctive style of work that incorporated beveling and mushrooms. Thirty years later, a couple walked into his Raleigh store with a broken panel needing repair. Hohl immediately recognized it as the artistry of his old customer. “It turned out that the artist was the man’s mother, and the broken panel was the only piece of her work that he had left. I brought out from my collection Supporting Cottage Industries pieces that she had made and gave them all to him.” Hohl’s voice One key part of his retail revenue derives from a quasi-cooper- still resonates with satisfaction at the memory. ative wholesale program he operates for local cottage industries. “Small studios don’t necessarily have the income stream to buy Selecting Content multiple full sheets of glass from distributors. My wholesale pro- When it comes to choosing which classes or books to offer for gram services that customer in my shop.” sale, Hohl takes a lesson from the Disney Company. “Every five Hohl has established general guidelines for this line of busi- years, Disney reissues Bambi or Cinderella, because they have a ness: The buyers must have a business license or tax number, make whole new group of toddlers to whom to sell that movie. I may have minimum purchases of $50, and buy quantities of half versus full a book that is an old goodie for me, but every few years I have a sheets. Those who qualify get a percentage off each sale. “I give whole new group of customers who have never been exposed to it. them better pricing than they could find in many catalogue or mail And just because I’ve offered a particular class before doesn’t mean order places. Buyers are never obliged to purchase the items they that they have had the experience yet.” special order, so they participate in my buyers’ club without risk.” For the past season’s Christmas workshops, Hohl has pulled Another tenet of customer service that Hohl adopts with these out stained glass projects he offered years ago. “People were as cottage industry owners is, “I do not compete with my customer.” excited as all get out.” And the workshops cause sales to climb He purchases finished pieces from his customers’ cottage industries dramatically. A lead workshop drew a full house. “We went from at about 20 percent of retail and offers them for sale in his shop. selling two cases a year of a specific lead came to selling four cases He never sets prices on his own custom work to be in competition a year, doubling my demand for this product simply by offering that with that of his customers. “They know that, and they appreciate it.” single workshop.”

50 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com Reading the Horizon Hohl attributes the strength of stained glass in the hobby market to the fueling desire to better distinguish one’s home. “On the East glass art society Coast, we have lots of row houses where people sought to give their individual homes character and stature by adding a beautiful glass Become a memBer panel. Stained glass will do it every time. The Glass Art Society is an international non-profit organization “Customers who are over 40 years old with money in a 401(k) founded in 1971. We strive to stimulate communication among artists, perceive that they have more money to spend when the stock educators, students, collectors, gallery and museum personnel, art critics, manufacturers, and all others interested in and involved with market is doing well,” Hohl observes. As the economy grows and the production, technology, and aesthetics of glass. unemployment drops, those trends translate into more customers GAS offers many great member benefits including four online issues through his door. of GASnews per year, access to the Member Directory, free classified listings, domestic insurance benefits and much more. The More Things Change . . . Hohl credits his five years with Delphi in the 1980s for a solid join us in san jose, ca initiation into the glass world. That job provided him an opportunity June 5-7, 2015 to meet many of the pioneers in the hobby glass industry, to take a Interface: Glass, Art, and Technology private tour of Kokomo Opalescent Glass in Indiana, and to train people who are now significant in the industry. These days, he reflects, the world of glass is transformed. The Internet is everything. With so much information out there on tutori- San Jose skyline, courtesy als, blogs, and chat rooms, a retailer can no longer take for granted of Team San Jose that first-time customers don’t know anything about glass. People The 44th annual GAS conference will feature prominent and emerging take a lot of classes online, so they often bring a level of exposure artists from around the world in demos, lectures, and panels. on their initial visit to the studio. The caveat, Hohl notes, is that the Internet hosts a lot of poor teaching amidst much solid information. Much of what is taught is very prescriptive and, as a result, very limiting. It fosters the misim- 6512 - 23rd Avenue NW, Suite 329, Seattle, Washington 98117 pression that there is only one correct choice of materials or tools or 206.382.1305 www.glassart.org [email protected] techniques. “I teach the art of stained glass, explaining everything as I go. I present everything about the hobby, share information and my experience, and let the students make their own choices. I believe a good teacher does not make choices for his students, whether it comes to selecting tools or deciding how to hold a cutter.” By contrast, Hohl’s mantra is, “Make your stained glass dreams come true.” The customer retains control of the dreaming. And whatever direction those dreams carry them, Hohl will be there with materials, expertise, and moral support to help them on their way.

Look for Subscriber Benefits coming to Subscribers Only via links in upcoming e-mails from Glass Art. This Bonus Content will include more about how Dan Hohl organizes his store layout, class offerings, pricing structure, and language choices to engage harder- to-reach customers and foster new generations of glass hobbyists.

Dan Hohl, Owner The Raleigh Stained Glass Center 1610 North Market Drive Raleigh, North Carolina 27609 (919) 876-9073 [email protected] www.stainedglassraleigh.com stained glass center at Facebook

www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 51 AGG News

Featuring the latest from the American Glass Guild

AGG Summer Conference “Glasstopia” at Bryn Athyn 2014

Utopia \yoo-’tō-pē-ə\ n. An imagined place or state of things in which everything is perfect.

by Tony Glander

f the word utopia means a perfect place, then “Glasstopia” must mean the perfect place for glass professionals. The American IGlass Guild (AGG) has put together just such an event for its June 26–30, 2014, conference at Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania. This distinctive location is an idyllic community 20 miles north of Philadelphia and home to one of our nation’s premier collections of medieval glass. It was chosen mainly due to the stained glass wonders in the Bryn Athyn Cathedral and Glencairn Museum. The conference will launch with a reception American Glass Now: 2014, a juried members’ exhibition, at Glencairn Museum. A keynote talk by internationally acclaimed stained glass artist, Narcissus Quagliata, will follow. Both events are free and open to the public. The full conference will feature tours, workshops, demonstrations, lectures, and panel discussions.

Exploring the Fine Arts With more than 30 years of experience as an artist and crafts- person, Judith Schaechter has examined the uncomfortable relationship of fine arts today and the notion of skill. Her lecture will discuss the awkward place in which skill finds itself and what is at stake for the arts. Sister Ann Therese Kelly, Song of Creation, The unique history of the windows at Bryn Athyn inspired Bri- Villa Maria College Library, Buffalo, New York, 4‑1/2' x 16'. anne Kozlowski, a New Jersey native and a master’s candidate at the University of York, England, to present a talk on why the window construction includes some very distinctive and exceptional aspects. Also from New Jersey, J. Kenneth Leap, President of the Pushing Established Boundaries American Glass Guild and lecturer at Bryn Athyn College will pres- Sister Ann Therese Kelly from Buffalo, New York, believes: ent on the rich glassmaking history of the Bryn Athyn community. “Our work in glass has the potential to help shape attitudes in to- The conference venue will feature a rare exhibition of blown glass day’s world by speaking through original images, just as medieval panels created by three Bryn Athyn factories. windows had the ability to teach religious stories and truths through Cynthia Courage, from New Orleans, Louisiana, has a fasci- their presence in the great cathedrals.” Sister Kelly’s presentation nating story of stained glass windows finding a new home in the is an important one for anyone creating new work today. She will aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The story covers the seven-year speak to the importance of designing contemporary windows that journey of windows from a deconsecrated church in Pennsylvania speak to significant and vital ideas in their appropriate settings and through their life of storage and disrepair to their new life in some times. Her latest installation for the Villa Maria College Library, of the hardest hit areas in New Orleans. Song of Creation, will be the main focus of this lecture.

52 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com From Arizona, glass artist and charismatic speaker Troy Moody Additional Offerings from Bryn Athyn will present Stained Glass Sensibilities in Terrazzo Public Art. To celebrate “Glasstopia,” conference host Bryn Athyn College Moody is often pushing his artwork into new boundaries—always will feature a series of glass workshops in its premier craft-based adding a fresh, new edge. In this lecture, he will discuss how ter- training program in the decorative building arts. This summer, the razzo, a decorative flooring material with a noble 600-year history, in Workshops at Bryn Athyn will include glass painting with Wil- many ways parallels the history of stained glass. He has had several liams & Byrne, J. Kenneth Leap, and Peter McGrain in addition to wonderful opportunities to translate his stained glass aesthetics and glassblowing, mosaic, stone carving, and blacksmithing. For more design concepts into terrazzo. Moody believes, “My experience with information visit www.brynathyn.edu/academics/sacredarts. terrazzo has convinced me of its artistic viability and the possibili- Conference events and lodging will be held in the modern ties for symbiotic cross-pollination between it and stained glass.” facilities of Bryn Athyn College with unparalleled access to the Jordan Wright and Ryan Fleet are coming to Bryn Athyn to Bryn Athyn National Historic District. The only way to get the full educate the glass community on video production techniques. This “Glasstopia” experience is to attend. We look forward to seeing lecture will shed light on the costs and processes involved in mak- you there. ing video to help widen a studio’s customer base through television broadcasting or the Internet.

Conservation and Restoration This year the AGG has inspired a number of experts from Eng- land to contribute to the conference. Tom Küpper, team leader of the Lincoln Cathedral Glazing Department, will be teaching a conservation workshop. Master glass painters, David Williams and Stephen Byrne from Shropshire, United Kingdom, will be leading a painting workshop as well as demonstrating their famous talents for all conference attendees. Sarah Brown, Director and Chief Executive of the York Glaziers Trust, is one of the most revered lecturers on the topic of stained glass, its history, and conservation. She will be presenting a talk entitled Looking for John Thornton and examining the current restoration efforts at York Minster. Restoration experts will engage in a panel discussion entitled, Conservation Standards and Guidelines: If Not Now, When? moder- ated by Art Femenella. It will focus on the need for comprehensive standards and guidelines for conservation of the stained and leaded glass in the United States. AGG’s experienced members and guests will add expertise and passion to this dialogue.

Demonstrations A new feature of the conference this year will be a series of demonstrations open to all conference participants. Coming from New York, Nancy Gong’s Chipping and Textural Etching demo will show how to add expression and dimension to glass through the use of sandblasted techniques. This will be a great introduction for beginners and an opportunity to explore new directions for those with experience in sandblasting. Ellen Mandelbaum, who is internationally recognized for her innovative stained glass commissions, is excited to demonstrate Brianne Kozlowski’s talk will include the stunning West her painting style in the hope that it will open up new possibilities Window of Bryn Athyn. Photo by C. Harrison Conroy Co. for other artists. A Brush with Freedom will give attendees the rare opportunity to see Mandelbaum’s personal style firsthand and will also demonstrate how each individual painter can go beyond the rules to find his or her own way to work. She states, “All of my Visit www.americanglassguild.org work is about light. I paint with light.” to learn more about AGG and all of the Scott Ouderkirk is an accomplished New York glass artist, events happening during “Glasstopia.” author, and craftsman with an interest in using custom decals to enhance glasswork. In his demonstration, he will cover how the use of water slide decals is suitable for many applications, including mass production as well as single items. © Copyright 2014 by Glass Art. All rights reserved.

www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 53 Educational Glass

Bryn Athyn College Summer Workshops in Stained Glass and Glass Painting

by Shawn Waggoner

he Bryn Athyn Historic District, Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, was an especially unique environment for stained glass and the perfect Tplace for the American Glass Guild’s (AGG) 2014 annual conference, “Glasstopia,” June 26–30. Landmarks such as the Glencairn Museum, Cairnwood Estate, and Bryn Athyn Cathedral offer access to preliminary drawings and models made by the original stained glass craftsmen as well as the medieval works that inspired them. Glencairn Museum’s collection of over 225 medieval stained glass panels was privately amassed as a teaching collection to inspire the craftsmen who built the cathedrals and gothic mansions of the Historic District. “You would literally have to travel to Europe to recreate this environment. It is a fantastic opportunity for the student to have firsthand access to this collection,” says AGG President, J. Kenneth Leap. Opportunities to learn how to build with traditional lead came and paint on glass using time-honored techniques are rare. Following “Glasstopia,” two July workshops will be presented at Bryn Athyn College by world-renowned instructors, Leap and Peter McGrain, AGG’s Joseph Barnes Lifetime Achievement Award recipient. Both will demonstrate to students how painting on glass allows for myriad imagery in stained glass. Students will examine historic panels before creating work of their own using pigments made from glass frit and metallic oxides, which are fired in a kiln to temperatures above 1000ºF. They will also learn to cut glass and assemble a panel using lead came. Housing is available on the Bryn Athyn College campus in the form of apartment-style living spaces. Each course qualifies for an Act 48 Professional Development Credit. For an additional fee, Bryn Athyn College will offer one academic credit per course. J. Kenneth Leap Bryn Athyn College History Founded in 1877, Bryn Athyn College is a small, private, coedu- cational liberal arts college dedicated to a New Church approach to education and life. The curriculum pairs rigorous academics with Painting on Glass with J. Kenneth Leap, spiritual inquiry and emphasizes critical thinking, quantitative rea- July 10–13, 2014 soning, public presentation, and experiential education. Bryn Athyn Leap is primarily recognized for his achievements in the field classes are small, with an average class size of 13 students and a of architectural stained glass. He created a series of stained glass student-faculty ratio of 7 to 1. The 130-acre campus is 14 miles north panels for the New Jersey State Capital complex in Trenton that of Center City Philadelphia. illustrates the history and cultural landscape of the state. The Bryn Athyn College has been educating undergraduates for more artist also produced an inverted dome that looks like a globe for than 130 years, dating back to its incorporation as part of the Academy Historic Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. The imagery in this of the New Church under the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsyl- project includes fish, which can be found off the Atlantic shelf, vania. The Academy included the college, as well as a seminary and and a mermaid wearing the Miss America crown. Leap recently two secondary schools. In 1997, the college changed its name from completed his largest project to date and his fifth for New Jersey the Academy of the New Church College to Bryn Athyn College of Transit—2,000 square feet of digitally printed glass panels for the New Church. a train station in Pennsauken, which opened in October 2013.

54 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com Working in a tradition that dates back to medieval Europe, Leap Traditional Glass Painting and Vitri-Fusáille® creates his pieces by hand painting glass with vitreous pigments, with Peter McGrain, July 17–20 fusing the color to the glass by firing it in a kiln, and assembling the Born and raised in Rochester, New York, McGrain’s first big glass into panels. His painterly work in stained glass has earned him break came when he secured a major public commission in stained numerous awards including a fellowship from the New Jersey State glass for the Strassenburgh Planetarium in Rochester. Major proj- Council on the Arts, a juror’s award of honor in the Philadelphia ects for the Seneca Park Zoo and Rochester International Airport Museum of Art exhibition, Contemporary Philadelphia Artists, and followed. McGrain did not paint on glass initially. His objective inclusion in the Corning New Glass Review. He is currently the was to get as “aggressively illustrative” as possible without using stained glass artist in residence at Glencairn Museum and adjunct paint. While teaching a workshop at Dan Fenton’s studio, McGrain professor at Bryn Athyn College. met Richard Millard, who invited him to attend a glass painting Leap’s workshop will explore the art of mixing, applying, and workshop at his Antrim School in New Hampshire. firing glass-based paints, enamels, and stains. While the primary “I realized I could achieve a tighter, more specific, and imme- focus of the class will be painting on the two-dimensional surface as diate image with paint. Painting was also more cost effective and it relates to stained glass, students will also learn fusing techniques, allowed me to create work with a message or image that a collector which can be adapted to glass tile making, jewelry, and mosaic would desire. It became more about what the work said than how projects. A wide variety of traditional and experimental techniques long it took to create. It was easier to achieve high-end, over-the- will be covered. Prior glass experience is not required. Students will top results with glass painting than with traditional stained glass complete a stained glass panel, which they will assemble using lead techniques.” came. Returning students can use the studio time to create a more In 2000, McGrain created a tour de force showpiece called advanced project of their choice. Keepers for Kokomo Opalescent Glass to use at trade shows and “There are lots of opportunities to take a stained glass class that in company ads. The window required that he experiment and learn focuses on suncatchers or lamps using the copper foil assembly about an aggressive painting technique, which includes layering technique. Opportunities to build with traditional lead came are transparent enamels to develop new colors, using enamels over more rare. Opportunities to do glass painting, a technique used to colored glass to achieve new colors, and tracing and matting a tight, create the kind of imagery seen in liturgical windows, are extremely complex image. Many people saw Keepers and wanted to know rare. Few people are aware of this technique, but it can be seen in how to create similar work, so McGrain began traveling the country the faces and drapery of the saints depicted in traditional stained teaching painting workshops. While teaching, he and his students glass panels,” says Leap. conjured ways to avoid so many paint firings to achieve the colors. “If you could start with a piece of glass that had all of the color in the right spots, then all you’d have to do is trace and shade it, with no need for extensive firings.” Hence, Vitri-Fusáille® was born. McGrain completed a landmark masterwork in Vitri-Fusáille® located in the Jewish Home of Rochester, New York in 2012. His Bird and Blossom Panorama, the first phase of an extensive decorative art glass installation, spans the entire length of a public gathering area within the facility, approximately 60 feet. It consists of 16 individually framed glass panels that work together to form the entire scene. Two companion murals were installed over an alcove dining area in an intimate setting.

Peter McGrain, Vitri-Fusáille®.

Peter McGrain, Keepers.

www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 55 As an award-winning artist and designer, McGrain has been working with stained glass for over 30 years. During this time he has handled every type of stained glass project imaginable, ranging in scope from intimate experimental panels to large-scale architectural installations. In all, it is his attention to composition and technique that make his imagery so successful. As a veteran DIRECTORY TO lecturer and instructor, McGrain has encouraged countless students to become better glass artists. INDUSTRY SUPPLIES The purpose of his workshop is to introduce students to the techniques involved in Traditional Glass Painting and his Vitri-Fusáille® process—the creation of specially prepared fused glass tiles, which Keep a eye out for this form are subsequently enhanced using traditional glass painting techniques. An emphasis will be placed on learning to have fun using coming in the mail in May. the formal processes of tracing, matting, and using silver stains and enamels. Students will create several personal pieces during this class. They will also participate in the creation of a large group project using the techniques they learn. This is a rare opportunity to take part in a hands-on workshop with one of the stained glass industry’s leading teachers.

Take advantage of this exceptional opportunity to have your company listed in Glass Art Magazine’s 2014–2015 Directory to Industry Supplies. Our New Online Directory is linked from our sister publica- tions’ websites and is linked to our Glass Art Website. The Direc- tory will be part of the September/October 2014 issue and will be mailed to Active Buyers who will use this resource to locate How Rare is Beauty? and purchase products and services during the next year! You Bryn Athyn’s religious perspective adheres to New Church the- may advertise in the Magazine Directory to Industry Supplies ology, a form of Christianity based on teachings of the Bible and or Online Directory for only $75 or in both the Magazine and the theological writings of Emanuel Swedenborg, who wrote: “All the Online Industry Directory for $120. religion is of life, and the life of religion is to do good.” At Bryn Athyn College, students explore this perspective in every course offered. What better place to hone skills in the art and craft of stained DEADLINE for glass, with its history of teaching and inspiring in liturgical settings. DIRECTORY LISTING submission: Says Leap: “Beautiful handcrafted objects are becoming increas- June 28, 2014 ingly rare in our highly mechanized society. We are all familiar with the term planned obsolescence, but when did you last encounter Advertising Space a ‘legacy object’ that was designed and crafted to last beyond the lifespan of the owner? We encounter these objects preserved in Reservations for September/October 2014 are: museums, but it is the craftsmen and their ethic of craftsmanship Closing that is in danger of disappearing from the world.” July 20, 2014 Materials Due: Visit www.newchurchgiving.org/workshops for more details on registering for the summer stained glass and glass painting classes July 30, 2014 at Bryn Athyn College. Contact Rhonda Sewell or Kathy Gentry at (800) 719-0769 Fax: (502) 222-4527 © Copyright 2014 by Glass Art. E-mail: [email protected] All rights reserved.

56 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com What’s New

Coatings By Sandberg (CBS) presents Rainbow 2 Sample Sets. Dichroic Extract is a pure form of the company’s high-quality coatings literally extracted off of the glass and preserved in a glass container. Rainbow 2 sheets will be sold only by the full sheet and will be broken down into eight separate containers of colors. Artist Brian Serck recommended that CBS add this sample set to its Dichroic Extract line, since it’s a blend of Premium Dichroic colors ~built by artisans for artisans ~ and contains both “powdered” and “large grain” Extract with the additional colors created in the Rainbow 2 sheets. Visit the CBS website for more information. Turn your scraps into glass art with a 714‑538‑0888 Master Artisan SCREEN MELT SYSTEM www.cbs-dichroic.com

Ed Hoy’s International continues to grow its line of Messy Rods from Creation is Messy (CiM). Several new Limited Edition colors are available. Artists can choose from over eighty in-stock colors. Visit the company’s website for more information. 800‑323‑5668 [email protected] www.edhoy.com

Fire Mountain Gems introduces new colors and special metallic finishes for Celestial Crystal® beads. Exclusive to Fire Mountain Gems and Beads, these new faceted rondelle beads are available on 16" strands in 10 mm x 8 mm and 6 mm x 4 mm. Choose from white beads with either half-coat metallic green or orange AB, clear beads with a vitrail finish, orange beads with half-coat smoky Make matching stands for your projects using AB, translucent light pink beads with half-coat light citrine, or metallic cobalt or purple Master Artisan REVERSIBLE MOLDS beads. The design possibilities are plentiful with this selection of new rondelles. 800‑423‑2319 541‑956‑7890 www.firemountaingems.com

Master Artisan Products presents Steel Sconce Molds. These molds are made from heavy duty stainless steel to withstand multiple firings and are available in three sizes: 9" x 12", 12" x 18", and 12" x 24". Check the company’s website for more details on this and many other great products available from Master Artisan Products. 250‑382‑9554 [email protected] www.masterartisanproducts.com

Glasscraft, Inc. carries a full range of borosilicate lampworking supplies from clear glass and ground joints to color, tools, and torches. In Spring 2014, the Master Artisan products are available from many wholesale distributors and company has even sourced a stock of uranium tubing for its more adventurous customers. will be exibited by Victorian Art Glass Lenz ground joints have been added to the product lineup at competitive prices, and there are at GlassCraft & Bead Expo Las Vegas. also 10 mm ground joints in males, females, 10 mm–14 mm transitional pieces, and Dewars. 888‑272‑3830 877‑893‑9386 Visit our website to view examples of different projects you can create www.glasscraftinc.com with Master Artisan tools and molds.

Wissmach Glass Company announces its new online fusing catalog Master Artisan Products 566 David Street. that includes 17 new Wissmach 96 colors. All of the Wissmach 90 and Victoria BC V8T 2C8 96 glass can also be included with the company’s new Luminescent™ Tel: 250-382-9554 coating. Artists may want to bookmark the new catalog, since it will be Fax: 250-382-9552 updated periodically. 304‑337‑2253 [email protected] www.masterartisanproducts.com www.wissmachglass.com

www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 57 CGBeads has a new frit holder marver. The 2" x 6" Glass Expert Webinars™ graphite marver has a shallow tray for holding frit, powdered enamels, murrine, silver leaf, or whatever an artist can dream up. This perfect holder allows artists to pick up the contents without Our Glass Expert Webinars™ spilling it all over the work space. Made from the high-quality graphite for which CGBeads Data DVDs are recorded live has become known, the flip side doubles as a superior, long graphite marver when the tray and include answers to ques- is not in use. The frit holder also comes in a shorter 2" x 3" open-ended version. tions asked via live chat by 940‑458‑8322 [email protected] Webinar participants. They www.cgbeads.com also include all the handouts from the Webinar in PDF Coatings By Sandberg (CBS) is pleased to announce the release of a brand-new product, Wavy Firestrips. They are format and the entire recorded available in a huge variety of colors, patterns, and many glass chat from the class. textures. Wavy Firestrips are water jet cut to 16" and feature the highest-quality CBS Dichroic coatings. They come in two sizes, 6 mm and 3 mm, are available in clear or black 90 or 96 COE, and are preferred for the artist’s convenience. Individual Wavy Firestrips are available only at an authorized CBS distributor or may be purchased on the company’s website by the tube, with ten pieces per tube, in either texture, patterns, or primary colors. 714‑538‑0888 www.cbs-dichroic.com

Glass Craft & Bead Expo concluded its 20th annual show on March 30, 2014, at the South Point Hotel Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. Over 250 classes were taken by 900 students, who hailed from 48 states and 7 Canadian provinces. Students and attendees also came from as far away as Australia, Chile, China, Israel, Japan, Mexico, Guatemala, Sweden, and the UK. The tradeshow had over 100 exhibiting companies, with a three-day attendance of over 7,800 viewing the latest in glass technology, equipment, and techniques. Many artists were also selling their work to the public. The 2015 Glass Craft & Bead Expo will be held once again at South Point, with classes scheduled for April 8–12 and the tradeshow for April 10–12. 800‑217‑4527 702‑734‑0070 www.glasscraftexpo.com Visit the “Books, CDs, and DVDs” link Northwest Art Glass introduces the Small Sheet Box, which can hold up to twenty 12" x 12" squares and can in the “Store” section of safely ship anywhere on the North American continent. www.glasspatterns.com For kiln working, the company offers Spectrum and Uroboros System 96®, Wissmach 90 for more information and and 96, Bullseye Compatible, and Uroboros Fusion FX 90. For traditional glasswork, all to purchase these great of the domestic glass brands are offered plus Fremont Antique, Saint-Just, and a variety of Data DVDs from imported architectural patterns. The Small Sheet Box offers a safe and affordable way to buy Glass Patterns Quarterly. a variety of glass for your next project, for the classes you teach, or just to try something new. 800‑888‑9444 425‑861‑9600 www.nwartglass.com

Please note these are Data DVDs to be viewed on computers and are not for use in DVD players. www.GlassPatterns.com

58 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com Readers’ Forum

Alex Bernstein + =

Dear Shawn, Make Us Part of Your Equation Your Warm Glass Studio Profile turned out great—even better than I was visualizing as you interviewed me for the article. I was honored His Glassworks, Inc. 2000 Riverside Drive, Suite 19 Asheville, NC 28804 to be in such 828-254-2559 • 800-914-7463 • hisglassworks.com good company along with my fellow glass artists Ben Moore, Peter McGrain, Mary White, and Michael Du- pille. I felt right at home in this great issue. Thanks again. Richard La Londe

Dear Shawn, I just received the current issue of Glass Art, and it looks great! Many thanks for your well-written article on my work. All the best. Benjamin Moore

Glass Art would like to extend a sincere thank-you to our readers who take the time to let us know how we are doing. Whether it’s to let us know about something that you think we’ve done well or to show us how you think we can improve, we value your Angle Stays Black™ input. You can share your opinions by con- Lead Shears™ Patina for Zinc tacting us via postal mail, e-mail, or phone. for Lead Came Artists Glass Art 8300 Hidden Valley Road No more uneven colors Westport, KY 40077 when you patina zinc channel with solder or lead [email protected] (800) 719‑0769 (502) 222‑5631 Available in 4 oz., 8 oz., 16 oz. The thoughts and feelings expressed ALS-V - No tools needed to change blade and studio size 32 oz. bottles in the Readers’ Forum do not necessarily Both products available exclusively from 1Glass Impressions reflect those of the publisher or Glass Art 1GlassImpressions.com (920) 382-1807 magazine.

www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 59 SAMA News

Featuring the latest from the Society of American Mosaic Artists Local Project Goes International in Puento Alto, Santiago, Chile Photos Courtesy by Gwyn Kaitis of Kim Wozniak

pproached by the local Mapuche community in 2011 to create a mosaic at the railway station, the original concept by Chil- Aean artist Isidora Paz Lopez was simple. The idea was to create a small, beautiful wall for the local railway station in the Santiago community of Puento Alto through the use of mosaic art depicting the area’s natural history and traditions.

Indigenous Art The Mapuche is a group of indigenous inhabitants of south central Chile and southwestern Argentina. Today they make up 80 percent of the indigenous peoples in Chile, or about 9 percent of the total Chilean population. The Mapuche were traditionally an agricultural society also known for its textiles and silverwork. Little did Lopez realize that one day over 4,000 meters of drab concrete columns and walls would be adorned with mosaics. The columns, all 84 of them, took an entire community to create. And many of those community members volunteering on the project got the mosaic bug, taking leftover pieces of tile to create their own mosaics at home. But the mosaic art didn’t stop there. The columns and railway station walls were so well received that eventually Lopez was offered an even greater challenge to cover the town square in mosaic art. To accomplish this task, 60 mosaic artists from 22 countries arrived in Puento Alto in January 2014 for a two-week mosaic marathon. A special touch included Detail of the new railway wall. materials brought by many of the artists from their home countries to be incorporated into the mosaic.

Over 60 artists work side by side to Toadstools grow in city shadows. complete the railway wall project.

60 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com Premium Glass Products, Inc. Can Your Present Supplier Give You Quality Bevels This Small?

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Transforming Communities Quality and Service Today, no longer ensconced in drab con- to the Glass Industry since 1988 crete, the Puento Alto rail station, columns, 1813 Bertrand Dr. • Lafayette, LA 70506 and town square are now truly part of a (337) 234-1642 • FAX (337) 234-1646 magical mosaic garden. The artwork depicts 1-800-752-3501 local flora and fauna as well as scenes from www.premiumglass.com the history and traditions of the Mapuche people. By all accounts, the local community is enthralled by the resulting mosaic Our Events Calendar artistry that has earned the community of Puento Alto the title “Mosaic Capital of has gotten South America.” too big for the Participating Society of American Mo- saic Artists (SAMA) member Kim Woz- magazine we had niak, who arrived in 80-degree Santiago to move it to the Web. after a flight from 15-degree Green Bay, Wisconsin, marveled at the sheer number of artists who came to work on the project and believes that this undertaking could serve as a model for transforming communities throughout the world. Just imagine the drab concrete in your own communities covered Keep up with in beautiful, sustainable mosaic art. the latest in Glass Art!

The Society of American Mosaic Artists, Check the a nonprofit organization of over 1,200 mem- “Community” Go to: bers, is dedicated to educating, inspiring, section on our www.GlassArtMagazine.com and promoting excellence in mosaic arts. home page for SAMA is the largest mosaic arts organiza- links to our www.GlassPatterns.com tion in the world. More information can be newsletters found at www.americanmosaics.org. and sign up to www.TheFlowMagazine.com receive future for all the newest workshops

www.GlassArtMagazine.com Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 • 61 Advertisers' Index Upcoming Advertiser Page 1 Glass Impressions (920) 382-1807 www.1GlassImpressions.com 59 Glass Expert Webinars™ AAE Glass (239) 471-7724 www.aaeglass.com 25 A.R.T.CO +1.408.288.7978 www.ArtcoInc.com 27 for 2014 Austin Thin Films, Inc. (800) 268-6163 www.dichro.com 33 Bullseye Glass www.bullseyeglass.com 45 Live, Two-Hour, C & R Loo Inc. (800) 227-1780 www.crloo.com 18 CG Beads (940) 458-8322 www.cgbeads.com 58 Interactive Web Workshops Coatings By Sandberg, Inc. (714) 538-0888 www.cbs-dichroic.com 5 with Renowned Glass Artists Covington Engineering Corp. (877) 793-6636 www.covington-engineering.com 13 Cress Manufacturing (800) 423-4584 www.cresskilns.com 33 No Traveling Required! D&L Art Glass Supply (800) 525-0940 www.dlartglass.com 11 Denver Glass Machinery, Inc. (303) 781-0980 www.denverglass.com 45 Ed Hoy’s International (800) 323-5668 www.edhoy.com 5 Gil Reynolds Euclid’s Elements (800) 296-5456 www.euclids.com 43 April 22 and 24 Evenheat Kiln, Inc. (989) 856-2281 www.evenheat-kiln.com 59 Firelady Productions (305) 323-2363 www.firelady.com 51 Firelite Forms (888) 800-3901 www.fireliteforms.com 11 Milon Townsend Fire Mountain Gems and Beads (800) 355-2137 www.firemountaingems.com 2 May 6 Franklin Art Glass (800) 848-7683 www.franklinartglass.com 19 Frantz Art Glass & Supply (800) 839-6712 www.FrantzArtGlass.com 39 Fused Fantasies (800) 719-0769 www.glasspatterns.com 19 Lisa St. Martin Fusion Headquarters (503) 538-5281 www.fusionheadquarters.com 19 May 8 GLAHAUS www.Glasshouse.de 23 Glass Accessories International www.glassaccessories.com 43 Glass Art (800) 719-0769 www.GlassArtMagazine.com 36/56/61 Petra Kaiser Glass Art Society (206) 382-1305 www.glassart.org 51 May 20 Glasscraft www.glasscraftinc.com 43 Glass Expert Webinars™ (800) 719-0769 www.GlassPatterns.com 45/47/58/62 Glastar (800) 423-5635 www.glastar.com 27 Dennis Brady Hang Your Glass (650) 353-4642 www.HangYourGlass.com 23 May 29, June 3 and 5 His Glassworks, Inc. (828) 254-2559 www.hisglassworks.com 59 Hollander Specialty Glass (800) 421-0449 www.hollanderglass.com 31 Inland (248) 583-7150 www.inlandcraft.com 25 David Alcala ISGB (612) 222-2243 www.isgb.org 27 Jen-Ken Kilns (800) 329-KILN www.jenkenkilns.com 18 June 17 and 19 Master Artisan Products (250) 382-9554 www.masterartisanproducts.com 57 Nortel Manufacturing (416) 438-3325 www.nortelmfg.com 37 Tanya Veit Northwest Art Glass (800) 888-9444 www.nwartglass.com 7 Olympic Color Rods (800) 445-7742 www.glasscolor.com 13 June 24 and 26 Olympic Kilns (800) 241-4400 www.greatkilns.com 47 Paragon Industries (800) 876-4328 www.paragonweb.com 37 Paul Wissmach Glass Co., Inc. (304) 337-2253 www.wissmachglass.com 64 Visit the Glass Expert Webinars™ Premium Glass Products Inc. (800) 752-3501 www.premiumglass.net 61 link under “What’s New” at Professional Glass Consultants (888) ETCHPRO www.EtchMaster.com 33 Ransom & Randolph (419) 794-1290 www.glass-cast.com 33 www.GlassPatterns.com Skutt Kilns (503) 774-6000 www.skutt.com 3 for more details and local times. Spectrum Glass Company (425) 483-6699 www.spectrumglass.com 63 Sunshine Glassworks Ltd. (800) 828-7159 www.SunshineGlass.com 47

62 • Glass Art TM • May/June 2014 www.GlassArtMagazine.com Peacock Green OPAL

Patty Gray

A color this rich and sumptuous deserves a name that struts a little... Welcome new Peacock Green Opal, a deep blue-green that adds a stunning new dimension to the System 96® Opal palette.

Available in Sheet Glass and Frit.

223-74SF

This versatile color works equally well with bright, bold colors or with more earthy tones such as the Fusers’ Reserve™ shown at left.

System96.com Visit our website to download our new online fusing catalog. www.WissmachGlass.com Wissmach 96™

Wissmach Glass Co., Inc. P.O.Box 228 Paden City, WV 26159-0228 Tel: (304) 337-2253 Fax: (304) 337-8800 www.wissmachglass.com Kiln Glass [email protected]