Rare Monumental Optical Crystal Glass Sculptures
At the age of 16 when I was working with my father at Zeno Glass in Mankato Mn, I found an old, discarded Box of stained-glass remnants. At the time I recall being completely mesmerized by the colors and their varied intensities. Reflecting back now I know that something else happened at that moment: I believe my younger self was faintly remembering another time of lifes experience.
In 1975 I started working at Glass Craft Studio in Portland as a stained-glass window repair apprentice, and I was at the time, just another cog in the repair window division. Yet this experience would greatly influence me later in my career when my real craftsman’s talents started to develop. Glass Craft purchased some glass beveling equipment that no one knew how to work so I took this opportunity and I eagerly tried my hand at learning how to bevel glass and ever so slowly began the process of teaching myself to coldwork. It was during this trial-and-error process I began to develop and engender/remember my souls burgeoning patience and problem-solving skills through this new craft experience.
In 1980 I attended the glass school in Orrefors, Sweden where I was given all the basic time-tested fundamentals on how to blow glass, as well as how to coldwork and facet brilliant cut crystal glass. At Orrefors school the dedicated Masters having decades of experience, helped support and guide me throughout the 2-year master’s curriculum which was crucial to my growth as a craftsman. Of course at that time, I only really just got my feet wet, but I had gotten the full blown taste of the European apprentice/master experience and learned invaluable techniques that are now so ingrown they are now just second nature for me in my work.
In 1982, I moved to Seattle and chose to open my own glass studio. With no business training, I didn’t even know what an invoice was. And without an art school background, I was unfamiliar with traditional ideas of form, design, color, texture, and the academic language of the art world.
In that sense, I was a blank canvas—an eager, unknown explorer of art, once again. ready to teach myself. Believing in myself came easily because I had no professional or academic training to limit my ideas about art, business, or creativity. I was raw, open, and curious.
Early in my path as a craftsman, integrity, curiosity, and focus were essential. As I began to see myself as an artist, creativity entered my life more fully, teaching me about both perfection and imperfection. Trusting in the creative process I learned to find satisfaction in the creative process and its “perfect” results, that often revealed hidden facets of my own self.
In 1985, a favorite mentor introduced me to Optical Glass, and I quickly immersed myself in the medium. I began with small works and eventually created massive monumental glass sculptures unlike anything ever seen before. Using my mechanical skills, I built a studio capable of supporting this ambitious work. Many of these Monumental sculptures took years of dedication to complete, with each stage revealing a new challenge and offering daily opportunities to engage with the creative process and hence the unfolding of my Soul.
I offer these works of art for your enjoyment as explorations of light—its movement, color, and refraction and within those interplays the gift of deep contemplation.
