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2012-01-03
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Learning about Glass (Frames)
Like other online issues of HGB, this one is in reverse date order (for online reading of the newest stuff at the top.)
| GAS 2012, June 13-16, Toledo OH www.artglass.org |
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| DALLAS OPEN HOUSE - The annual Cedars Open Studios will be held this Saturday Nov. 19 from 12 to 6. The Cedars area is just southeast of downtown just north of the Cedars DART Rail station which is served by all Red and Blue line trains. Over 60 artists including Jim Bowman's closest to town and Laura and Brad Abrams (she does metal, he does metal and glass) in the middle. Information and maps can be found at http://2011.cedarsopenstudios.com/ Although it is chilly in Dallas today, the high on Saturday is to be in the 70's. 2011-11-15 |
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BLOG 1 - I don't often blog here, thinking of it as a
newsletter with comments, but events of the past few days have shifted my view
somewhat. My 69th birthday was Sunday and in mid morning I got a call from
my doctor with a report on my MRI done last Wednesday to examine an apparent
problem around my pituitary gland in my head that showed up on an earlier MRI of
the whole head. It seems I have a moderate, probably benign, tumor
squeezing in along side my gland and also probably involving the optic nerve for
my left eye. I will be seeing an eye doctor this morning to verify details
of vision effect and a neurosurgeon on Thursday to begin plans to go in and get
it. Any surgery has risks and going in next to the optic nerve doesn't thrill me, but the operation these days is done through the nose and up through the thin lower shell of the the skull instead of down through the thick outer skull past the brain as was done in the past. No idea of scheduling at this point. [UPDATE: Eye exam shows no involvement of the optic nerve, thus, at least to me, reducing the possible risks of removal. 9:25 pm] UPDATE 2: Neurosurgeon, looking over information and examining the MRI DVD has concluded that the best thing would be to wait and monitor vision and hormone changes and do another MRI in a year to observe any changes. 2011-11-15 9:40 pm] On a lighter note, literally, last night I was laying in my dark bedroom and thinking I would like a candle - without the effort of filling my little oil candle nightlight, etc. So I pulled over my iPhone, being charged on the shelf beside my bed, and looked on the App Store under candle and found a delightful free one that not only gives candles with a very realistic flame that goes on and off with a flick of but reacts to sounds on the microphone to waver the flame and you can blow it out! When on charge it prevents the phone from timing out, so I left it on and propped up so when I awoke, as I do every night, I had the candle burning. The app includes several candle forms under the flame. For those who don't know, the iPhone is becoming wildly popular with blind folks, like my wife, because in includes VoiceOver, as do all Apple products, giving access in a way that costs several hundred dollars extra on Windows and Android based machines. With the upgrade to iOS 5, any iPhone can be made to talk by pushing the home key 3 times (off the same way) like the Macs gain it with Command F5. 2011-11-15 |
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DALLAS AREA OCTOBER+ - Kittrell/Riffkind Art Glass
Newsletter "Thank you for 21 wonderful years! We're marking our 21st Anniversary
with a gala celebration starting this coming Saturday, October 1st, and
continuing through the entire month of October. For our anniversary we are featuring an exhibit of unique One of a Kind pieces created especially for this celebration by 50 of our favorite artists who have shown in the gallery over the past 21 years. The opening reception will be from 10am until 5pm on Saturday, October 1st. Artists whose work will be featured include Garrett Keisling, David Hering, Eric Edner, Danielle Blade & Stephen Gartner, Beverly Parker, Jackie Braitman, Steve Scherer, Cassie Edmonds, Jeff & Heather Thompson, Steve Anderson, David Patchen, Steven Main and Alex Brand --- just to name a few. http://www.kittrellriffkind.com VETRO on Nov. 5 is holding Glass on the Tracks XII which includes showing glass in a box car on the tracks across the parking lot and destroying glass with a guillotine if it does not make bid - http://vetroartglass.com/glass-on-the-tracks-xii THE CRAFT GUILD OF DALLAS which offers some glass classes has moved to 5100 Beltline not far from Kittrell/Riffkind http://www.craftguildofdallas.com/ 2011-09-27 |
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GLASS QUARTERLY FALL 2011 - No.124 has arrived.
Two ads in the first three pages feature Dale Chihuly's new white series -
formal vase forms in two/three tone white patterning with applied white flowers
with spiral stems. An ad on page 4 promotes the November opening of new glass
studio next to the Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk VA
www.chrysler.org UrbanGlass (Glass
Quarterly Publisher) ad promotes new interim space now, classes in cold working,
flame working and kiln working in fall and new UrbanGlass 2013.
www.urbanglass.org Short articles
-HOURGLASS - discuss color use by designer Kaj Franck, Rik Allen's Starship
Enterprise for Rod Roddenberry; glass in large landscape features at John
Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek, CA; requesting funding for a forthcoming
Harvey Littleton biography; the conversion of a high end pipe gallery to virtual
online sales; and a book report on a new book by Paul Stankard tied to a seven
month show at the Corning Museum of Glass with a full page ad a few pages
earlier. Following an ad for the Glass Auction Gala Oct. 15, at Liberty Museum, articles begin with a very long one on Vladimira Lumpar's cast glass with "industrial aesthetic" that merges the prism effects from glass with the repetitive detailing of textured metal decking. GLASSTRESS discusses the ancillary glass exhibition during the Venice Biennale showing glass flowers cascading out of frames, hour glass with brick inside, large goblets with ash in the stem, chrome "velvet rope" access control posts and cords, and garishly colored distorted heads. "Nothing I've experienced [shows] that the Studio Glass movement is only one part ... of what glass is capable of achieving." Next Nadania Idriss discusses what led to opening a public glass blowing studio in Berlin, to happen in November. The last explores in pictures and plans the use of glass in the Apple stores of various locations for stairs, roofs, and entry structures. These notes touch on about half of what is in the issue. $28 per year, back issues $7 plus postage. www.glassquarterly.com 2011-09-27 |
| THE STUDIO @ CMOG SCHED - The Studio at the Corning Museum of Glass, one of the big four glass workshop sites, has released its fall and winter 2011-2012 schedule in booklet form and it is available online also. Fall at the Studio is 10 week long evening classes suitable only for those living nearby and weekend classes in Beginning Glassblowing, Next Steps, Vessels, and Goblets as well as Lampworking and Flat Glass. Ten week sessions are $440 while weekends are $220. Winter is like the summer intensives where the class runs for a week, all day each day with added activities. Tuition $750, Room and Board $561.60 (w/tax), $20 application fee. My quick impression of the classes is a lot of sculpture oriented work is available including off center work, Solid sculpture with Pino Signoretto, Large Scale Kiln Casting, Cold Construction, Glass casting into investment mold, and sculpting glass sea creatures. Several of the later sessions seem aimed specifically at improving craft skills in working glass. 2011-08-21 |
| GOBLET VIDEO - Very nice clear video of Daniel Schreiber making a blown glass goblet with all the steps in good detail and clear uses of the various tools and function of some of the "decorative" bits. Again, a reference from CraftsWeb Glass Forum. Artist apparently on this site http://www.bonhamfieldsglass.com/contact.html video defaults to HD, other sizes available depending on your connection. 2011-07-28 |
| GLASS CLAY - A note on CraftWeb Glass Forum, which continues to be a great source of discussion and access to people with tonnes more experience than I have, points to a product out since late last year called Glass Clay http://www.glassclay.com/ which several people like for making items to add to blown glass or otherwise use. In a sense it is like pate de verre but the glass has been chosen to fuse at lower temperatures so it can be fired without molds to hold it, as is required with pate. Note that it has the same properties - bubble throughout so opaque or translucent - never transparent. It is in the same spirit as Precious Metal Clay that has been around for years and is used for making silver, gold, or bronze small jewelry pieces. Like that, it shrinks during drying and firing. It comes in two COE's to be compatible with the most common glass fusing systems 2011-07-23 |
| HOT ENOUGH? - Today is the 22nd day of over 100F temperatures here in Dallas (and points north) with no significant rain in over a month. Obviously most glassblowers in the area shut down about the end of May. I have been having real problems working in any way this year and being outdoors for mowing and fence repairs has to be done in 20-30 minutes sessions, often with a break for Gatorade, and this is in morning. Even inside work is tiring. Lyme disease polyneuropathy seems to have expanded in legs and affects walking balance but I don't know how much is that and how much is lack of exercise/muscle weakness/age. 2011-07-23 |
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TEXAS OPEN HOUSE This weekend Eric Hanson is having an
Open House, Glassblowing demonstrations, “Seconds Sale” and "Come
see my new iridescent series of all original vases and paperweights,. When: Saturday. May 7th 9 am - 1pm Where: 1099 Cedar Creek Road, Argyle, TX 76226 which is about 7 miles directly south of UNT, Denton. WWW.LAUGHINGGLASSSTUDIO.COM 2011-05- 05 |
| GOLD PRICE DRIVES UP COLOR COST - Olympic Color Rods (www.glasscolor.com) announces that the rise in cost of gold is forcing a price increase in colors containing gold, effective 16 May. 2011-04-29 |
| WILD SIDE GLASS SHOW - Kittrell-Riffkind in Dallas is opening a show tomorrow 4/30, On the Wild Side, to run through May featuring glass in the image of animals or with the images in or on the glass. 2011-04-29. |
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BOOK PREPRINT - The following is edited from an
overblown announcement from a source that is earnest and has been a good source
in the past. "Coldworking Glass without
Machines Pre-Publish Special: Only $20 for a Limited Time This full-color printed book includes over 30 pages of easy to understand instructions and color photos to teach you to shape, grind and polish you work to perfection without ever flipping a power switch! This brief, clearly written book is for the rest of us who want to make great glass artwork without spending a small fortune on big equipment. Topics covered include proper use of diamond hand pads, loose abrasives, polishing powders, "hand lapping" on plate glass, and much more! Only, until now, the information on traditional coldworking-by-hand has been hard to find. The few resources on coldworking that do exist focus almost entirely on how to use equipment that most of us neither own nor have available to use. Unlike my previous digital ebooks, this is a full color, printed book and it is about to go off to the printer. To keep the price low I need to keep the print quantity high so I'm offering (for a very brief time) a 20% discount on "pre-publish" orders. That means when you order and pay now, you get "Coldworking Glass without Machines" for just $20 (plus $3 shipping and handling). And, I guarantee your order will be fulfilled from our first print run which we expect to receive in about 30 days. You will receive your book shortly after that. For more information and to order before the special price expires, visit www.coldworkingglass.com 2011-04-26 |
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FT.WORTH MAIN STREET ART FESTIVAL - This past
Saturday I traveled to Ft. Worth to see the
Festival that fills Main
St. for nine blocks over four days. Huge crowds, so progress is a slow shuffle
(or roll on my mobility scooter.) And very high prices - to get below $200
you only can pick things smaller than your hand and prices center somewhere over
$1,000 with pieces maxing at $18,000 or more. I have to wonder how much
sells at the upper prices, but people come back to show year after year from all
over the country, so they must cover costs. The glass category lists 16
artist booths but I found two places with large amounts of glass in their
pieces listed as sculpture. Those are two of 15 categories with over 200
artists. A judgment of intensity, at least for me, is that they ran a full
schedule of TRE trains to/from Dallas on Sunday when normally none are run. The two sculpture listed artists using glass are Andrew Carson who makes the massive whirligigs/wind driven kinetic sculptures I photographed in 2008, who uses glass cups to catch the wind along with much bigger metal blades; and Marlene Rose making solid cast glass facial/statue forms. Among the glass category artists, I found Todd Cameron's split vases with welded forms in between interesting and at the show he had a bunch of funky clear glass robots only one of which is on his site. Not blown glass, but Scott Amrheim makes graceful large vessels that are etched or decorated flat and then sagged to shape and mounted with metal. Chris McCarthy does some very nice murrini color work. Stephan Cox (Facebook, may need account to view) does some nice work, assembling with adhesive his own blown and fused pieces to sculptural shapes. Renee Engebretson & James Engebretson have some remarkable vases which are blown flashed glass, etched, sandblasted and carved to elaborate edges. And the pieces that startled me most were actually wood that glowed like glass: Joel Hunnicutt assembles wood pieces in pierced forms that he then turns and finishes in glowing colors. He says he was inspired by glass and has done well by the inspiration. 2011-04-18 |
| EUGENE GLASS SCHOOL announces its 2011-12 schedule in a nice booklet with ads. Held in Eugene, Oregon, classes include torch, kiln, bead, and over two dozen furnace glass classes from $170 two day Beginner Classes (levels 1-4) to 5 day $900-1600 sessions with the likes of Pino Signoretto, Gianni Toso, and Karen Willenbrink-Johnson. The operation also includes a low cost Glass Camp of one day workshops in July, a link with a charter school, and various one day events. www.eugeneglassschool.org 2011-03-29 |
| GLASS WEEKEND 2011 is a biennial event held primarily for collectors and with over fifteen glass galleries displaying. This year it is June 10-11 at WheatonArts, www.wheatonarts.org, the museum complex around a former glass factory in southern New Jersey [my visit]. It includes visits with exhibiting artists, a discussion panel with glass artists who are children of glass artists (Littleton, Marioni, Bernstein, Lomne, Ayotte), alternating demos by Richard Royal and Giles Bettison, and various social events. Cost is $400 plus more to make a glass object on Friday. www.glassweekend.com 2011-03-29 |
| ART IN THE DALLAS 'HOOD - Art in the Hood Spring Show Sunday, March 20, 10-6 www.artinthehood.com I went out to this event, which in the past has been scattered at artists' home studios throughout southeast Dallas, but this year they teamed up to create the "ultimate ONE STOP spring art event" at Brad Abrams' glass studio in the far southeast corner of Dallas. Spread over the grass along side Brad's house and studio were tent booths and tables showing glass, painting, jewelry, and other crafts. Face painting and live music were provided and demonstrations through out the day in the glass studio. All-in-all a nice collection of people on a nice day. A complete list of artists available at: www.artinthehood.com . (edited 2011-03-29) |
| S.TEXAS CLASSES - Once again, for the 21st time, Jayne Duryea will be offering two 4 day Beginning Glassblowing classes May 16-19 & 23-26 at Coastal Bend College in Beeville TX about 85 miles SE of San Antonio. The classes are open to 17 to 79 year olds and cost $275. Room and board is local motels, etc., at personal cost. For information duryeaj@costalbend.edu www.jayneduryea.com or look up her name on YouTube 2011-02-24 |
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FEBRUARY OPENINGS - Dallas gallery KITTRELL-RIFFKIND had
a somewhat stunted opening due to the ice and snow storm but will be running
their 18th annual Scent Bottle Invitational until 5 March. KR is all glass and
offers classes in lampworking and flat glass.
http://www.kittrellriffkind.com/
2011-02-05 PITTSBURGH GLASS CENTER opened TENacity show, until 17 April, which features 30 local artists interpreting personal or historical events in glass for the tenth anniversary of PGC. http://www.pittsburghglasscenter.org/ |
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GLASS QUARTERLY WINTER - Number 121, Winter 2010-11
as usual has HourGlass (notes), Reviews, News and Articles. A full page of
Hourglass is devoted to a new glass studio at the Chrysler Museum of Art in
Norfolk Virginia http://www.chrysler.org/
to be a 7,000 sq.ft. annex in a former bank branch when completed in fall 2011.
The published floor
plan (PDF) is a diagonal hotwall with 3 benches with about half the space
devoted to seating. The museum's
page on the progress
includes the information about jobs. The GJ note indicates a $7.5M budget
with endowment and employment included. HourGlass also discusses the
changes in CERF's mission and whether its fundraising makes the changes clear
and the availability of glass in the auction market selling collector's glass. Articles explore the artistic (not technical) aspects of Ann Wolff's thick kiln cast glass, review the influence of Paul Hollister's writing on glass in the New York Times over two decades, picture the selections of Ted Muehling of Lobmeyr precisely modeled glass for a Cooper-Hewitt show and examines John Leighton's Japanese influenced glass on exhibit in Los Angeles (ironically titled "Gazing East" looking about 19,400 miles to the Far East, ignoring the 5500 miles to Asia.) One page reviews cover shows, with a single picture each, at galleries in Tacoma, Pittsburgh, and Brooklyn. The back of the issue includes a Quarterly Education Guide page, several of pages of UrbanGlass (the publisher) stuff, a Suppliers Directory page and a nicely picky review of a book about American Studio Craft that slights glass ("Makers" from U of NC Press) www.glassquarterly.com 2011-02-05., |
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SNOW FARM's 2011 schedule has been sent in booklet
form for classes from May thru October including fifteen 3 to 7 day Glassblowing
Workshops. Many of the classes are Beginner or Beginner to Intermediate.
Seven day classes run $840 to $900 for room, board, and tuition, with a commuter
option of tuition and lunch. The location in western Massachusetts also
offers Kiln Glass and 9 other major categories with over a dozen classes in each
area. The schedule is on line
http://www.snowfarm.org/weeklong-in-depth-classes.html 2011-01-31
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DALLAS GLASS CLASSES - Kittrell Riffkind Art Glass in
Dallas at Beltline and the Tollway, which is a fine gallery of hot glass
associated with a teaching studio of cold and warm glass, announces its
class schedule
for the first half of 2011. Stained and slab glass, fused plates and
jewelry. 2011-01-23 |
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VETRO VALENTINES - Vetro glass studio, which is located
on Main Street in Grapevine, Texas, just north of DFW Airport is offering events
targeting Valentines Day. Leading up to the day are seven days when people can
walk in, pay a fee and help make a glass flower ($25) or glass heart ($35) - Jan
28/29 10am-6pm, Feb 4/5/11/12 10am-6pm, Sun Feb 13 12pm-5pm. note that it is
walk in only except for a group of 15 or more.
Details Then on Valentine's Day, with reservations, couples can have a Hot Date of about an hour between 6pm and 10pm for $95 and both get a flower or heart plus (if over 21) two glasses of wine each with hors d’oeuvres. Reservations required. Same link above. Note the detail so that people who check it out know what they are getting into. 2011-01-23 |
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PITTSBURGH GLASS CENTER JANUARY & SUMMER - PGC
is offering weekly high school level classes in torch and furnace working
starting Feb. 8 with a scholarship deadline of Jan.24.
Get details and register online. Their summer intensive classes run 5
days and include one with Ed Schmid of book fame
PGC's summer
roster is
online. Winter weekly classes and workshops start in a few days but
you can check
online at their site On the First Friday of each month PGC
holds Hot Jam and it can now be viewed live online at
www.ustream.tv/channel/pittsburgh-glass-center which also archives it, but
not in the obvious place - the screen image - look to the lower right. One link
is very short, one is a silent torch demo and one is a noisy hot shop view
2011-01-13. |
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HABATAT GALLERIES continues to offer excellent examples of modern glass. The two
linked galleries in Virginia (near Washington DC) and West Palm Beach, Florida
can be found at
habatatgalleries.com
Gallery Line: 703.989.7110, 8020 Towers Crescent Dr. Tysons Corner, VA
22182 [An impressive history of Habatat can be found at
http://www.habatat.com/history.asp
that discusses the gallery once open in Chicago and its loss but not the
splitting off of the two east coast galleries - note habatatgalleries.com vs
habatat.com] 2011-01-13 |
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GAS 2011 - (note change above, until a moment ago, I had
Tucson listed) The Glass Art Society
www.glassart.org is the major organization for furnace glass artists while
also including collectors, warm glass, and lampworking. I think every person
interested in hand made glass should attend at least one Conference. Major
artists demonstrate and discuss their craft, business is done, and old friends
get together. Seattle is an especially rich site, offering many galleries and
studios to visit, including a rare chance to visit Pilchuck (fee) and the area
glass promotions extend to Tacoma and Everett this time. Pre- and Post
Conference Classes are offered, extra cost of course. 2010-01-07 |
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THE STUDIO 2011 - The Studio at the Corning Museum of
Glass
http://www.cmog.org/default.aspx (frames require using link at left side)
the second of the major summer session schools to be listed here, has posted
their 2011 schedule of Spring and Summer sessions. The Studio in spring also has
weekend and weekly sessions that Pilchuck and other schools do not. The location
is urban with housing in a motel. My visit
Starting May 30, The Studio has 11 one and two week sessions which may include
two furnace glassblowing classes as well as a lampworking, cold working, kiln
working or other class. Sessions are about $1170 per week (room, board,
class fee) and have a wider range of skill levels to enter and topics to select
from than Pilchuck with less well known instructors although cold working and
lamp working people are well known hot glass people. The 2011 summer
glassblowing instructors are A Personal Introduction to Molten Glass, Carl
Siglin; Blowing and Sculpting Inside the Bubble and Hot Sculpting, Martin
Janecky; From Thought to Object, Jane Bruce and Moshe Bursuker; Tricks and
Techniques, David McDermott; An In-Depth Introduction to Venetian Techniques,
William Gudenrath; A Foundation for the Future, Boyd Sugiki; Continue the
Glassblowing Journey, Nadine Saylor; Multiple Gathers, George Kennard; Form &
Techniques, Kenny Pieper; From the Sketchbook to the Blowpipe, Benjamin Cobb;
Beginning Glassblowing, Amanda Gundy; Next Steps in Glassblowing, Harry Seaman,
2011-01-06 |
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PILCHUCK 2011 - This famous glass school north of
Seattle, WA, is holding 5 sessions in 2011, most of which are 3 weeks for which
fees total about $3500 (Room, Board, Class cost, Utility premium) Pilchuck is an
outdoor experience with a range of buildings on the campus.
My visit. Class schedule
link. Although glassblowing sessions dominate, included in the 25 classes are sessions labeled Painting on Glass; Kiln Casting; Pâte de Verre; Printmaking; Kiln Casting; Flameworking; Animation; Architectural Glass, Hot Casting, Painting on Glass; Sandblasting, Engraving, Electroforming; Engraving, Fusing, Printmaking. [semicolons group combination sessions] Thirty-one named artists lead sessions so several pairs and groups. Those involved in apparent molten glass classes with topics Boyd Sugiki & Lisa Zerkowitz, Think Big…Work Small; John Miller, Pushing the Envelope; Gene Koss, Hot Casting for Sculptors; Scott Benefield, MetaCane; Madeleine Boulesteix & Nanda Soderberg, Hot & Ready-Made; Mitchell Gaudet & Erica Larkin, Charles Cohan, Printing the Glass Matrix; Ross Richmond, In the Details; Michiko Sakano, Glassblowing for Design; Eddie Bernard, Kinetics; Chris Taylor, Congealed Breath; Shunji Omura, Methods of MoltenMadness; Pike Powers, Mécanique du Verre; Adam Holtzinger & Benjamin Moore, Venetian Foundation, Bertil Vallien, Containers of Light & Story; Ulrica Hydman-Vallien Artists in residence (in pairs, per session) 1 Rashaad Newsome, Tavares Strachan, 2 Gabrielle Belz, Alison Saar, 3 Catherine Chalmers, Bruce Mau, 4 Bruce Metcalf, Nari Ward, 5 Magdalene Odundo, Lino Tagliapietra. 2011-01-06 |
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NEW YEAR - I hope you have a good new year. Having had a
New Year's Eve that was quiet for me (and noisy with firecrackers and gun fire
out in the neighborhood) I spent the day wandering through a number of pages
editing with a bit of adding. Most are dated so a search on the revision
date at the top of the page will find them. Backyard
Studio, Tool Making for Glassblowing,
Glossary of Other Words,
Benches, Etc., Doors to High Temp Locations,
Working Alone, Glossary of
Tools & Equipment for Glass 2011-01-01 |
| GLASS VIDEOS - Because it seems important, a link back to the last of 2010's entries. |