Glass Craft Expo 2014

Another exciting year at Glass Craft Expo. This year I spent my first day helping Nina "Sam" Hibler with 8 students in Twist and Shout making glass cane. That was right up my alley. Friday I was a TA for Gail Stauffer's Enameling on Metal.  And this morning I am wrapping it up with Gail's Electroforming which I can almost recite in my sleep after years of assisting in. Good times...

 

Student torch firing enamel on copper in Firday's workshop

Weekend Deliveries



Saturday I took an early morning drive through the hill country to spend the day at Artisans of Rocky Hill, in Fredricksburg, Texas. I love these drives; the quite time to myself, the small towns, the flora and fauna. On this morning the fog provided a vial over peach trees still bare of leaves but full of pink blossoms. It was storybook like to see miniature ponies pawing the choral fence, a cottontail rabbit trying to cross the road and newly shaved sheep in the pasture.  As I sipped my coffee I thought a bit of the twenty plus pieces in the box next to all made in shades of browns, vanilla and bronze. Not exactly spring colors I worried but on display in the gallery next to wood turnings and pottery they looked great.

 

Examples of the items delivered to Artisans of Rocky Hill

Made of soda lime glass with twisted canes in brown, black and vanilla

 

Fiesta Bouquet
37x21" mosaic


While at Artisans I made the final payment and picked up a wonderful mosaic called "Fiesta Bouquet" by Patricia Karr & Pamela Studstill. The piece measures 37 x 21" and is made of glass and handmade ceramic components. I can  imagine the hours spent hunched over this piece to add all the components and put in the glass arches in the background. These ladies did a terrific job in executing there idea. Now that I have it safely home, I just need to find that perfect place in my home for it to live.

 

Sunday, I spent the afternoon in the gallery at Roadhouse Arts, in Bulverde Texas, visiting with good friends and dropping off a few pieces for the shop. It is so good to see what the artists behind Roadhouse are doing with this space. They are collecting a small group of really talented local artists in their gallery in addition to their own work produced on property in their personal studio spaces.

Pieces delivered to Roadhouse Arts in Bulverde, Texas

Tonight - SAY Si Silent Auction

Tonight is SAY Si's annual Small Scale Work for a Larger Cause Silent Auction. The event includes artwork from over 200 artists including myself and other local glass artists. You can view the items in the auction at saysi.org . It is quite the event regardless of if you decide to bid on artwork or not. If your looking for something to do in San Antonio tonight and want to support a really good cause you should check it out.

Spring Exhibit Comes to Close

The San Antonio Calligrapher's Guild Spring Exhibit at the Central Library will come to a close on March 28th. If you are in downtown San Antonio this week, pop into the enchilada red main library building. The building it self is quite a site. The Spring Exhibit is on the ground floor in the gallery. Directly above the gallery the Fiesta Tower by Dale Chihuly is installed to commemorate the library systems 100th anniversary. From the gallery space you can look directly up to see it in it's full state.

2014 Say Si Small Scale Works for a Larger Cause

Kilnformed Soda Lime Glass

& Sandblasted Mirrored Glass
 

This piece is being included in the 2014 Small Scale Works for a Larger Cause an exhibit and silent auction benefiting Say Si. Celebrating 20 years of service to San Antonio's youth, Say Si is a premiere youth arts organization. Small Scale Work for a Larger Cause is a fundraiser that benefits the effort this organization makes to reach middle and high school age students in San Antonio. All the money raised goes to Say Si's student programming. The event begins on Thursday, March 6 with a preview  party and concludes on Friday, March 21 with a silent auction. For more information on these events visit http://www.saysi.org/small-scale-2014/.

Red Hot was created in the middle of a hot south Texas summer. It started as a lino block which was cut and printed onto refractory material. That refractory material was also cut and then used to melt the glass into in a kiln reach temperatures of approximately 1500 degrees Fahrenheit. The kilncarved piece was mounted onto a piece of mirrored glass which was sandblasted to add additional commentary (in case it wasn't clear enough) as well as to enhance the luminosity of the piece. After an exceptionally cold winter this piece seems a fitting reminder of what we have ahead of us soon enough.