Fused glass is a way to explore light, heat, gravity, imagination and time.  Time is especially critical both in the art of fusing but also in the design process.  My studio overflows with assembled pieces and scattered design elements, most of which get arranged and rearranged over the course of weeks and months.  Partly it is my nature to constantly play and change, but it is also because I have come to respect glass as an unforgiving medium – it is always a balance between what you imagine and what your skills allow you to accomplish.

Fused and slumped glass is an old method of forming glass bowls, plates and vases.  Multiple layers of art glass are heated in a special glass kiln to temperatures of 1450 to 1500 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 to 45 minutes.  At these temperatures, the separate pieces of glass fuse into a single sheet or plate of glass.  The fused plate is then slowly lowered through the annealing temperature range to remove stress inherent in cooled materials.  Depending upon the design, more glass can be added and the plate is again fused and annealed.  The cooled, fused plate is then cut to the shape of the mold and again heated to smooth or “fire polish” the edges and  top.  A single heating and cooling cycle can take from 10 to 14 hours.

Both the mold and the plate are placed back in the kiln and heated to a slumping temperature in the range of 1250 to 1300 degrees Fahrenheit.  At this temperature the glass plate softens to the point where gravity conforms the glass slowly into the shape of the mold.  Again the glass is carefully cooled and annealed.

Some of these pieces have been through five to ten cycles in the kiln.

Fused glass invariably has bubbles which are an inevitable part of the process of making kiln formed glass.  Some artists even intentionally introduce bubbles and other inclusions in the glass for decorative effect.  My studio makes a variety of art glass bowls, trays, sun catchers, clocks and jewelry.