Licha Nicholson sees faces in the glass. I can't put it down strictly to her vivid artist's imagination, however, because I see the faces too. Deeply embedded in a thick slice of glass, one tiny iridescent white shard becomes an eye, a green and blue whorl to the right an ear. The possibilities seem endless. For those living in the Pacific Northwest who are interested in glass art, they may well be just that.
"I started with glass blowing in 1984," says Carmen D'Aquila, owner of C. D'Aquila Art Glass. "I realized quickly that I wanted to move into a different glass medium, but at the time there were very few classes available in glass fusing. But now, the Pacific Northwest is a mecca for glass artists. There is more opportunity to pursue glass art in Washington state than in any other part of the country." Licha Nicholson, owner of Sundance Glass by Licha, agrees. "I can get any kind of glass from Northwest Art Glass, right here in Redmond."
Along with the availability of materials and the abundance of studios offering kiln time on a rental basis, there is Pilchuck Glass School, in Stanwood. "It's not a place for novices," warns Carmen. "Pilchuck hosts world-class glass artists."
Licha attended Pilchuck in the Spring of 1999. "I thought it would be like a summer camp, with maybe eight hours a day of glass work." What it was, she soon found, was an extremely intensive three weeks of nothing but glass work from sunrise until 2 or 3 in the morning.
Licha's working studio is a wonderland of glass and machinery. She has two kilns, several diamond blade saws and a sandblaster for glass engraving.
And everywhere, there is glass. There are sheets of both clear and colored glass stacked in horizontal shelves against one wall. Glass tiles are lined up in rows on the windowsill. Glass crosses hang on the wall. Plastic bags filled with amber colored glass chunks lie on tables next to wax molds shaped like baskets. A large oblong glass bowl sits on a lower shelf, filled with whimsical glass balls. "This is called frit." Licha shakes the jar of periwinkle colored powder she has pulled from the shelf. "It comes in powdered form, and also what's known as coarse frit." She opens another jar and spills some emerald green chunks of glass onto the table in front of me. "You use the powdered frit when you want more of a painting effect, and the coarse frit for a mosaic look."
Licha's studio is impressive, but she asserts that a novice in glass can get by with simple tools-namely, glass, a small glass-cutting tool, a kiln (for fused glass) and some imagination. "I am always buying more tools as I learn new techniques, too. I just bought a torch after I learned about it in a workshop. You can never stop learning in this art," Licha says. "That's the fun part."
Advice for novices
Both Carmen and Licha now own four kilns between them, but each started with the bare necessities, and added to their workshops slowly, as their passions grew and their profits justified new purchases. "An initial investment of $1,000 to $1,300 can get you a basic setup," Carmen tells me. "Now they even have the small counter-top kilns. A friend of mine has just that, and she does all of her glass jewelry in it. You could easily do four-by-four tiles in it, too. One at a time, of course, but it would work. Or else you can just rent kiln time."
For new students in the glass-making arts, Carmen recommends bead-making. "It's instant gratification. "They come in, work with a torch, and they get some experience working with glass in its molten form. When they're done, they have a handful of glass beads to take home."
Carmen, who teaches at Cascade Art Glass, has also developed a new class which combines flame work (done with a torch) with glass fusing. "I call it Continuing Fusing with a Twist. For me, working with the different mediums allows me even more potential for creation. I get ideas for glass blowing when I work with fusing, and the other way around."
Inspiration
Carmen considers glass to be a medium of unlimited potential. She has worked with her hands all her life, but found her true calling when she began working with glass. "I try and figure out why I am drawn to certain images. I connect to ceremonial and spiritual art. Tribal cultural imagery appeals to me, because design is woven into functional pieces, like blankets and baskets. Art becomes part of daily life that way." Carmen's recent work includes a series of hand-blown, sandblasted vases, a collaborative project with glass artist Richard Pitkethly. "It's a more sculptural process, kind of like carving," Carmen explains. "I only do about six of them per year, so they retain their uniqueness."
Licha looks at her art as a way to bring her rich Hispanic heritage to others. "I am culturally motivated, and I like unique art." Some of her favorite pieces are her crosses. Initially she made them only as gifts for family and friends, but then she decided to sell them commercially. They sold quickly. "I don't think people see them as religious necessarily, but as art. No two are alike. It makes me feel good that somebody has a cross that no one else does."[[In-content Ad]]
