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Washington Glass School’s Flameworking Club in action.
Laughter, stories and creativity. With fire.
Instructor Rob Kinchloe displays his unique talents.
Monthly Archives: February 2011
Note to Artists: Get A Real Job!
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The Simple Dollar – a personal finance blog has an interesting article about artists and their financial prospects. Referencing a Francis Ford Coppola interview on the risks of making money from the arts, author Trent Hamm offers some insights on the hard facts of what an artist must be prepared to do to make a living from the arts and “follow their bliss” – what they don’t teach in art school.
Coppola’s point is that: the fun creative stuff that so many of us do really doesn’t earn us much money at all, at least not most of the time…
Don’t assume your talent or skill will be your money maker for a long, long time. Your talent or skill is going to be your side job – treat it like such. If you go to work, come home tired, and convince yourself to not do anything with it today, you’re never going to make it…
Live frugally… ’nuff said.
Make friends and connections – lots of them. Spend at least some of your time cultivating relationships with people who can help you with spreading what skills you have…
Improve your own social skills, especially in gently promoting yourself. If you’re introverted, this is key. The ability to communicate successfully with others, particularly when talking about yourself while not coming off as a braggart, is an ability that’s vital if you want to get others interested in your skill. So many artists I know claim to be introverts, and shy away from talking about their work. They really MUST overcome this and be able to easily speak (in positive terms) about their own work.
If you want riches, find another career path. Art is wonderful, but it doesn’t channel human effort in a way that generates wealth. A Generous inheritance from a wealthy family is one of the easiest and fastest ways to become rich, but cannot always be achieved.
The best thing you can do if you have talent and are passionate about that talent is to start packaging it up. Contrary to what often seems taught in art school – is not true that if you sell your art, you have “sold out”.
The message from the blog posting is “Do what you love, but have a back up plan that you can tolerate to support what you love.”
Click HERE to read the entire article.
Glass Fun Facts: Why Is Glass Transparent?
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UK Professor Phil Moriarty discusses what makes glass appear transparent in this video by the Sixty Symbols – a collection of videos about physics and astronomy presented by experts from The University of Nottingham.
A photon checks into a hotel. The bell hop asks him ” Can I help you with your luggage?” To which the photon replies, “I don’t have any. I’m traveling light.”
I still have no idea why glass is transparent, but his accent is so good that he doesn’t need to pronounce words right. I guess his explanation didn’t have enough energy and passed right true me. He must assume I know something about being excited.
Previous Glass Fun Facts postings:
Glass Fun Facts: Gaffer/Composer
More Glass Fun Facts: Bullseye Glass
Float Glass Fun Facts
Glass Fun Facts – Shattered Glass Predicts Weather
Historical Glass Fun Facts – How the Invention of Pyrex and The Studio Glass Movement are Connected.
Hot Stuff – "Lost Foam Process" at DC Glass Works
>Robert Kincheloe was at the DC Glass Works aluminum pour last night – working on a series of sculpture pieces. Watch as the molten aluminum is poured into the steel containers containing sand and the original stryofoam forms that are sacrificed as the hot aluminum replaces the original.
click on image to jump to video
Kirk Waldroff – Untold Fables
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Kirk Waldroff
Theodulus and the Egret, Part 2 | 2011
left: glass, oak, and LED lighting | 30″ x 23″ x 5.5″
right: hand-colored woodcut on Rives BFK | 10″ x 18″
Printmaker and glass artist Kirk Waldroff has a solo exhibition at Glenview Mansion in Rockville, Maryland (opening reception on February 6th, 1:30pm to 3:30pm).
Kirk is exhibiting new work including prints, print based glass sculptures, paintings, and even a queen-size bed.
Untold Fables
New Prints, Print-based Sculpture, and Paintings
February 6 – March 2, 2011
Opening Reception: Sunday, February 6, 1:30pm – 3:30pm
Glenview Mansion Art Gallery
Glenview Mansion at Rockville Civic Center Park
603 Edmonston Drive Rockville, Maryland 20851
Kirk Waldroff has a degree in illustration from the University of Delaware. Kirk’s work has been shown at many area galleries, and was featured in the international exhibition “Glass 3”. Kirk is currently assisting with classes at the Washington Glass School, while developing techniques that combine printmaking and sculptural glass.
"The Elements" at ArtSpace
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Sean Hennessy “A Dream Of Flying” cast glass, concrete
“The Elements,” is an exhibition that features the imaginative work of four contemporary artists, Sherill Gross, Sean Hennessy, Sean Lundgren and Alexandra Zealand, opening on Friday, Feb 5th at ArtSpace Herndon.
Anchored in the classic elements of Hellenic physics – Water, Fire, Earth and Air – these artists use the elements as a part of their medium, rather than as the subject of their works.
Each element contains the origin of their work, is part of their work, and even transforms their work. Paper can not be created without water; ironically too much water can also destroy paper. Early fire pits dug into the sand had the side effect of also causing the first forms of glass, when the extreme heat of the fire melted silica. Dirt is the earth, the source of clay, and the root of life. Air is the space that floats between suspended objects, allowing for movement, light and shadow. Air is also the catalyst for physical transformation.
“I think of Fire as light, as heat, and as a metaphorical spark of creativity, a Prometheun gift of consciousness. I use fire both physically and conceptually to create glass and concrete wall relief sculptures inspired by personal interpretations of myth, religions, and a whimsical use of everyday objects.” Sean Hennessey
Sean Hennessey is a sculptor, painter, and glass artist. A graduate of Berea College, Sean worked in professional theatre for ten years and has bridged the theatre and fine arts community since moving to DC in 1997. His works have been seen in many contexts and venues including: The Shakespeare Theatre, The Kennedy Center, the Wooly Mammoth Theatre Company, National Geographic, Discovery Channel, HGTV, Arena Stage, Smithsonian Folk Life Festival, Signal 66, The National Institutes of Health, The Ratner Museum and Artomatic. He’s the owner of Scenic Artisans LLC, a decorative paint and sculpture service, and a resident artist at the Washington Glass School and Creative Arts Center. dcsean.com
The Elements
The Elements
ArtSpace Herndon
Dates: February 5–26, 2011
Reception: Saturday, February 5 – 6-8pm.
Gallery Hours: Tuesday–Thursday: 10am-2pm, Friday: 10am-8pm, Saturday–Sunday: 12pm-5pm, Closed Mondays
750 Center Street, Herndon, VA
Tel: 703-956-6590
Reminder: Call for Glass Artwork Entries
>Two “Call For Entries” are nearing deadline for glass artists to submit images and info. For those of you that are in need of reminding – here’s what’s coming up:
HYPEROPIA PROJECTS has a call for entries for a juried show called Superposition that challenges traditional notions of glass artwork. With a broad definition of “glass and glass related”, the organizers are looking for artists whose works inhabit so many places simultaneously that they might not fit into any of them. They are interested in works that directly address this condition of being in multiple places at once, as well as projects produced by artists who inhabit the fringes of genres
APPLICATION DEADLINE FEBRUARY 11th
WHEN – June 2011, in conjunction with the Glass Art Society Conference
WHERE – Center on Contemporary Art, Seattle Washington.
JURORS – Jin Hongo, Jocelyne Prince, Michael Scheiner, Jack Wax
APPLICATION DEADLINE – February 11th, 2011 For more information about the exhibition, visit http://hyperopiaprojects.com/
Also:
Saint Louis’ Craft Alliance has announced a national invitational and juried exhibition titled “Identify Yourself” – exhibition dates are May 20-July 3 , 2011. Entry Deadline March 25th.
The theme of the show is, “Who are you? What is your history and what makes you, you?”
The curator/juror, noted gallery owner Duane Reed, will be choosing work that explores ideas pertaining to cultural identity, psychological identity or personal narrative. Some of the invited artists include Sonya Clark, Gregory Grennon, Elizabeth Lo, Mark Newport and Joyce J. Scott.
The exhibition will be at the Craft Alliance DELMAR LOOP location: 6640 Delmar Blvd, Saint Louis, MO 63130.
Click HERE to jump to the St Louis Craft Alliance artist call.
Put A Bird In It
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Episode 2 of IFC’s new television show “Portlandia” has a very funny spoof of the crafty application of birds.