British Society of SCIENTIFIC GLASSBLOWERS VOLUME 54 October 2016 No. 4 - C O N T E N T S - Ed's Crack 107 Company Profile 109 Pilchuck Glass School 111 ASGS Annual Symposium 114 Book Reviews 119 GAS 2016 - A Review 126 Fibre Optics 146 Elements - A Review 147 PLP Retirement 150 BSSG Chairman’s last message 151 DEADLINE FOR NEXT ISSUE - November 15th 2016 B.S.S.G. JOURNAL - VOL 54/No. 4 105 www.bssg.co.uk British Society of SCIENTIFIC GLASSBLOWERS Founded 1960 Please could all communication on BSSG matters eg. competitions, training, membership etc. be with the BSSG Chairman in the first instance. Thank You. BSSG SOCIETY CHAIRMAN Robert McLeod Glassblowing Department S.U.E.R.C Scottish Enterprise Technology Park Rankine Avenue East Kilbride G75 0QF Tel :- 01355 270150 Email :- [email protected] HON. SECRETARY HON. TREASURER SOCIETY LIBRARIAN - Position vacant - Phil Jones - Terri Adams - Minerva Glass Design & Fabrication Facility, Bloomfield Close, University of Oxford, Timsbury, Inorganic Chemistry Laboratory, Bath, South Parks Road, BA2 0LP Oxford OX1 3QR Tel: 01225 385513 Tel: 01865 272609 Email: [email protected] Fax: 01865 272690 Email: [email protected] JOURNAL EDITORIAL MATERIAL ADVERTISING MATERIAL Ian Pearson Graham Reed Journal of the B.S.S.G. Hunter's Oak, Trendle Lane, Glendale, Sinclair Street, Thurso, Bere Alston, Devon PL20 7HT Caithness, Scotland KW14 7AQ Tel: 01822 840002 Tel: 01847 895637 (Evenings & Weekends) 07484 112300 01847 802629 (Business hours) E:mail: [email protected] Fax: 01847 802971 Skype: grahamsciglass13 E:mail: [email protected] [email protected] The Journal is published by the B.S.S.G. every quarter and is available to members free. It is also available to others at subscription rates. Apply to the Society Office. Copyright to B.S.S.G. and contributors 106 B.S.S.G. JOURNAL - VOL 54/No. 4 f a unicorn without a horn is a horse then can a horse grow a horn to become a unicorn? I only ask as I received a request to make three glass Iunicorns from the director of a play to be performed at this year's Edinburgh Festival. Titled “The Glass Menagerie”, it involves a scene where a couple dance and in the process a glass unicorn is knocked over breaking off its horn. A kiss follows forgiveness which it seems originates from accepting the fact that a unicorn is in effect just an ordinary horse without the embellishment of the role defining horn. Pretty deep for some but to me it's obvious. Similar to this Journal being printed without words although I know some readers would prefer more photos. Not of me surely? This issue has a distinct USA feeling to it in that my Corning visit for the Glass Art Society Conference is published. You will be pleased to know that it is the edited version as I didn't want to bore you with a series of self-indulgent ramblings. I am sure there are more effective ways to bore readers. In addition we have a review of a book by the American glass artist Paul Stankard and a profile of Pilchuck Glass School in Washington USA. Not forgetting a report from the ASGS Symposium by Lee Mulholland. Then there is a review of an exhibition by the Scottish Glass Society. Continuing the international flavour of the Journal It gives me great pleasure to announce the winner of this year's Literary Prize and thus receiving the Lucy Oldfield Trophy resides in Norway. It is of course an old friend of the BSSG, Kon or to give him his “posh Sunday” name of Konstantin Kraft-Poggensee. In the glass world there are no boundaries or barriers and information flows across us all like glass sealing to glass without interruption or contamination thus securing our true destiny. Yet this in my experience is impossibility. Human nature dictates unrest must be endured during development. I hear of falling membership in many voluntary organisations both within the glass world and outside and also across the globe. So like it or not this is what we have and we will deal with it as we see fit. It is perhaps opportune now to welcome the new Chair of the BSSG. B.S.S.G. JOURNAL - VOL 54/No. 4 107 Ed’s Crack Travelling back from the Glass Art Society's conference in Corning I had to get to Elmira Airport which was about ten miles from the hotel where I was staying. The hotel had booked a taxi for me and I knew that sometimes taxis look like minibuses. So when a minibus turned up with the driver saying he was going to the airport I made myself known. I should have been more suspicious when he asked if I was “Poppy”. Well I thought “Pearson” starts with the same letter so I said “I could be, and anyway I am going to the airport”. He helped me with my luggage, my very heavy luggage and I sat in the minibus and waited while he spent time inside the hotel. After a while a taxi pulled up behind the bus and waited. I wondered if that was the one booked for me so I got out of bus and asked the taxi driver. Sure enough that was the taxi I should have been in and not the minibus. I retrieved my luggage, seemingly getting heavier and heavier now and passed it to the taxi driver. I got in the taxi and we drove off. I wonder if the mini bus driver missed me. Funny as he was same driver that collected me a few days earlier from the airport. Perhaps he will recognise me next time I visit and if so feel I owe him a tip. This could be in 2018 as I heard a rumour that the ASGS is thinking of hosting a symposium then in Corning. Poppy could still be waiting! I'm inclined to think that this Journal needs a wider circulation. It maybe that 50% of the World's population does read every issue from cover to cover but what about the rest? I share my copy with some members of my family and friends. Of course it has to compete with Cosmopolitan, Woman and Home, Prima, Radio Times, Country Life, Men's Health and Trucking, but I think the BSSG Journal can hold its own in a crowd. Of course the real challenge and competitor is not real at all. Yes, it's virtual, it's on-line and it's soooooo past its “use by date”. What I mean by saying that is the only true “virtual reality” is emotional communication and the day that's bottled you can call me Sir Ian!! 108 B.S.S.G. JOURNAL - VOL 54/No. 4 Company Profile Quartztec Europe Since the acquisition of the East Kilbride site in October 2015, Quartztec Europe has undergone a restructuring programme and review. Ron Jackman is our major shareholder and MD for Quartztec Europe, bringing with him his 28 years' experience within the Quartz and Ceramic Industry. Gordon Whyte remains our Operational Director, working alongside Ron Jackman in directing both Operational and Sales Departments, combining their many years' experience in the semiconductor, solar, defence, automotive & lighting industries. Quartztec Europe is without doubt the largest fabricator of Quartz Glass in the UK, our facility is a modern, purpose built manufacturing site of 50,000 sq ft, with 5,000 sq ft of office space. Previously being a flagship Heraeus facility we have maintained our experienced and knowledgeable workforce allowing us to continue to provide the high quality and great service which is known with the site. Whether this is OEM semiconductor parts or bespoke, individual items, we have the onsite capabilities and knowledge to discuss all technical aspects with you and supply to your expectations. The new Quartztec team are planning a large expansion for the coming year with new state of the art equipment, apprenticeships and implementation of new working practices to enable the business to grow and develop further. We look forward to working with you! If you have an interest in o u r p r o d u c t s a n d services and feel we could support with your requirements, please contact one of our Sales Department Team. s a l e s @ q u a r t z t e c - europe.com B.S.S.G. JOURNAL - VOL 54/No. 4 109 Company profile - Quartztec Europe 110 B.S.S.G. JOURNAL - VOL 54/No. 4 Pilchuck Glass School James Baker - Executive Director, Pilchuck Glass School Pilchuck Glass School (www.pilchuck.com) was founded in 1971 by glass artist Dale Chihuly and patrons Anne Gould Hauberg and John H. Hauberg. Pilchuck has been a primary force in the evolution of glass as a means of artistic expression. By creating an environment with an emphasis on glass, access to resources, and an ever-expanding international community of artists, Pilchuck has become the largest, most comprehensive educational centre in the world for artists working with glass. Pilchuck's artistic and educational programmes take place primarily on a serene sixty-acre wooded campus fifty miles north of Seattle. This setting in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains overlooks Puget Sound, provides isolation from the influence of commerce and urban centres, and allows artists to focus on creative expression. The campus features extensive facilities that offer a comprehensive array of workspaces and equipment for glass art production.