Tag Archives: Celebrity Cruise Scholarship

Local glass artist Lindsay Woodruff learns coldworking techniques for jewelry at The Studio

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Lindsay Woodruff at The Studio of The Corning Museum of Glass Although I grew up in Corning and had visited the Museum before, I never could have guessed the impact glass would have on my life. When I began working at the Museum as an Explainer in high school, a new world was opened up for me as I learned about the history, science, and technology of glass from curators and other experts. My curiosity about this material grew after watching dozens of Hot Glass Shows, and I started taking classes at The Studio when I was 17 years old.

I explored flameworking and glassblowing techniques through The Studio for the past several years and found my niche in flameworked jewelry. In my work, I enjoy pushing the limits of the soft glass I work with, which is sensitive to temperature shifts and prone to cracking, by creating sculptural beads. Recently, I have been focusing on expressive sculptural pieces, which are great for display but are not intended to be worn. Ultimately, my objective is to create quality pieces of wearable art, so to steer myself in that direction, I took Don Friedlich’s class, Coldworking: Jewelry and Sculptural Forms class at The Studio this September.

I admire the gemstone-like quality of coldworked jewelry and sculptures by artists like Martin Rosol and Pavel Novak, and I wanted to gain an understanding of how they worked and be able to find my own use for the techniques. In the class I learned how to cut glass with diamond saws, grind with flat wheels and lathes, polish, engrave, and drill holes. It opened me up to shapes and finishes that can be achieved by the gradual removal of cold glass. Don also dedicated a portion of the class to jewelry assembly – findings, mechanisms, and glues. In retrospect, I don’t know how we managed to fit so much material into six days.

Don Friedlich instructs Lindsay Woodruff on the flat wheel at The Studio

Don Friedlich instructs Lindsay Woodruff on the flat wheel at The Studio.

The Museum, The Studio, and the Rakow Research Library are all phenomenal resources, and I am very fortunate to have them so close to me. The Studio facilities are well-maintained and well-stocked with quality tools and quality technicians, and I often feel spoiled when I’m there. For instance, in class I discovered that the coldshop runs heated water to the machines, providing maximum comfort while working. Being a student at The Studio involves other perks, like lectures, opportunities to meet with experts in glass art and research, lessons on how to photograph glass, and in-depth tours.

My other experiences during the week were invaluable. My class met with the Curatorial Assistant of Modern Glass to look at modern jewelry that is not currently on display. Former Steuben engraver Max Erlacher stopped by to give a demonstration of engraving cuts. I got a massage halfway through the week by a masseuse The Studio brings in for students, empowering my body to keep working through the busy schedule. On top of that, I spent the week with interesting, creative people who share my passion for glass and my passion for jewelry.

Objects made in Don Friedlich’s class, Coldworking: Jewelry and Sculptural Forms

Objects made in Don Friedlich’s class, Coldworking: Jewelry and Sculptural Forms

All of this was made possible by the Celebrity Cruises Glassmaking Scholarship I received. It not only paid for tuition – it gave me the stress-free, glass-centric week I had been craving for a long time. I now feel more refreshed, inspired, and motivated than ever before and I can’t wait to get started on materializing some of my new ideas.

Telling a story in glass: Celebrity Scholarship recipient Elizabeth Fortunato

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Elizabeth Fortunato began studying glassblowing at the Pittsburgh Glass Center through a high school program. She continued working with glass through college, exploring kiln working at Kent State. This summer, she was awarded a Celebrity Cruises Glassmaking Scholarship to take Erica Rosenfeld and Leo Tecosky’s class, Cross Pollination at The Studio of The Corning Museum of Glass.

In this class, students designed patterns out of Bullseye glass murrine and fused the glass into a solid block. This type of glass, typically used for kilnforming applications, was brought into the hot shop where it was heated, rolled up onto a blowpipe, and formed into objects.

As a kiln working glass artist, Elizabeth doesn’t generally blow glass to make her pieces. Instead, she recreates found objects in cast glass, making molds from everyday objects like hats, tools, houses, and suitcases – “anything I can tell a story with.” The tradition of storytelling is an inspiration to her, and her work is her “rendition of a true or fictional story.” Her classwork was primarily formed by slumping in the kiln.

While in Corning, Elizabeth sought to meet other artists and aimed to “see how much I can learn.” In the week-long class, she absorbed knowledge and exchanged ideas with other students from various backgrounds. The techniques she learned have provided her with new elements that she now has the option to incorporate into her style.

Elizabeth Fortunato

Elizabeth Fortunato at The Studio

“Without the scholarship, I wouldn’t be here,” she says. At the post-collegiate stage in her life, the receipt of the scholarship enabled her to take the “fun, fast-paced class” in a well-maintained studio with multiple ovens and a state-of-the-art hot shop. Elizabeth also took advantage of the other perks of taking a class at The Studio, including a tour of the eleven large-scale glass sculptures in the Corning Inc. Headquarters building, free admission to the Museum, and the use of the Rakow Research Library.

Learn more about the Celebrity Cruises Glassmaking Scholarship Fund, and others.

See the 1-hour Live-Stream demonstration from Erica Rosenfeld & Leo Tecosky’s course – Cross Pollination at The Studio: http://youtu.be/ERtj0HNYf1g

Influenced by Industry: Celebrity Scholarship recipient John Shoemaker

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Celebrity Scholarship recipient John Shoemaker at The Studio of The Corning Museum of Glass
John Shoemaker, a Philadelphia resident and 2012 graduate of Tyler School of Art, came to The Studio this summer upon a recommendation from one of his professors to take Benjamin Cobb’s class, From the Sketchbook to the Blowpipe. He received a Celebrity Cruises Glassmaking Scholarship to take this course, which focused on staying true to a drawing, troubleshooting the problems that arise while working hot glass and improving on the forms through repetition in order to create the piece the students wanted to achieve.

John is working on a sinker form to use in his “Balance” series, a collection of work made with glass and wood that features two “disparate objects that are unified in their form but are different in scale.” Attracted to early industrial aesthetics, he will often coat his pieces in metal oxides to create a look closer to metal than glass.

“I’m definitely influenced by where I live,” John says of Philadelphia, where he is surrounded by “relics of industrial history” such old warehouse buildings, driftwood, and pulleys. He is particularly inspired by block and tackle systems, simple machines that have revolutionized how we relate to and manipulate nature through the use of mechanical advantage. In a post-industrial society, he finds inspiration in these machines, “marks of a good craftsman” that have withstood the test of time despite inevitable deterioration. “They have an influence on how I think about time,” he says.

Celebrity Scholarship recipient John Shoemaker at The Studio of The Corning Museum of Glass

Working on a glass form shaped like a sinker at The Studio

John was excited to continue to develop his series after spending a lot of time assisting other artists. The Celebrity scholarship to study at The Studio gave him not only financial assistance, but also the opportunity to focus intensively on improving upon his drawings and ideas. During the week-long course, students worked in small groups, allowing for individualized feedback from the instructor. Students caught glimpses of other classes going on during the session, and made connections with instructors and other students. The Studio also offers other benefits during class sessions – John was able to meet with the GlassMarket buyer, go through the Museum with Bill Gudenrath, and go on a guided tour of the glass sculptures in the Corning Incorporated headquarters building – a rare sight as this building is not open to the public. “Overall,” says John, “it’s very inspiring; it makes me want to come back to Corning and work hard on my body of work.”

Learn more about the Celebrity Cruises Glassmaking Scholarship Fund, and others.

Everything old is new again: Celebrity Cruise Scholarship recipient Brandyn Callahan

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In Portland, Oregon, when he was just ten years old, Brandyn Callahan began learning how to make fused glass from his mother. His interest in glass led him to flameworking and glassblowing classes, and after high school, a glassblowing apprenticeship. Brandyn now lives in Seattle, Washington, where he works in private glass studios. This summer, he came to The Studio for the first time on a Celebrity Cruises Glassmaking Scholarship to take Goblet Thinking for the Modern World with instructor and glass artist Michael Schunke.

sketches for goblets by Brandyn Callahan

The focus of this class was on designing and creating goblets with the appeal of a modern aesthetic that can “have a sense of grace and beauty in the form” without the ornate style of the historical precedence of Venetian glass. Maintaining a focus on functionality was fundamental to this class, and to this end, Brandyn spent the week concentrating on making clean components and managing appropriate proportions in his pieces.

Brandyn Callahan at The Studio

Brandyn Callahan at The Studio

He is dedicated to gaining proficiency in glass, and he says, “Goblets are a great way to build skills as a technical glassblower.” Michael Schunke’s goblets “flow really well together, none of his parts seem disjointed, and I’m trying to take that from this class and his work.”

Brandyn comes from a part of the country that has been influential to the Studio Glass movement over the last several decades, but he was excited to visit Corning, a town which he says has “such a rich tradition of people blowing glass, engraving glass, and being in the glass industry… for hundreds of years.” His time was well-spent immersed in the culture of glass – so much so that his initial week-long stay turned into two weeks. In addition to time spent in class, Brandyn found “so much material to soak in” within the Museum collections and the Rakow Research Library. “I’ve wanted to come to Corning for a long time,” he says. “I feel honored to have been given the scholarship.”

Learn more about the Celebrity Cruises Glassmaking Scholarship Fund, and others.

See the 1-hour Live-Stream demonstration from Michael Schunke: Goblet Thinking for the Modern World: http://youtu.be/PRPP3yZMvbw?hd=1

AIDA Scholarship recipient Lisbeth Biger studies pâte de verre with Shin-ichi and Kimiake Higuchi

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With the assistance of a scholarship awarded to her by the Association of Israel’s Decorative Arts (AIDA), Lisbeth Biger made the trip to Corning from Israel this summer to study pâte de verre with Shin-ichi and Kimiake Higuchi.

Kimiake Higuchi and Lisbeth Biger look at glass color samples

Kimiake Higuchi and Lisbeth Biger look at glass color samples

AIDA was founded in 2003 by the late Andy Bronfman, her husband Charles, and Dale and Doug Anderson. AIDA’s mission is to foster the development of contemporary decorative artists from Israel—including artists working in glass—by connecting them to galleries, collectors, institutions, and other artists internationally. AIDA began working with The Studio to support scholarships in 2007, and sends many students to Corning every summer through this partnership.

Lisbeth, an instructor at the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design in Jerusalem, is taking the Higuchi’s pâte de verre class in order to enhance her skill, and learn from masters in the technique. Over years of teaching, The Higuchis have prepared over 1,000 samples to demonstrate the uses of color and taught many tricks that Lisbeth can incorporate into her work at her advanced experience level. Of the Higuchis, Lisbeth asserts, “Nobody is better in the world.”

Lisbeth’s focus in this class was to learn about color gradients, and how to create molds with a high quality plaster. The final goal of the class is to complete a container with a lid. Because it is a time-consuming process, the pâte de verreclass is a two week session. Students made colored powders and plaster molds, fired the glass in the kiln, and broke the glass free from the molds. The final steps include coldworking the glass to remove excess created by the molds, and then grind and polish to finish the piece.

AIDA Scholarship recipient Lisbeth Biger works on her pâte de verre object in the Higuchi’s class

AIDA Scholarship recipient Lisbeth Biger works on her pâte de verre object in the Higuchi’s class

Inspired by the beauty in everyday objects that “we meet so often we don’t see it anymore,” Lisbeth uses gentle colors and often incorporates recycled glass to make her artwork. Though she started as a ceramicist, she says there is something magic about glass, a material that is unpredictable and has its “own life.”

The Studio stays open to students until 11 p.m., and many take advantage of the long days, enjoying extra time to work and to socialize. Lizbeth found that talking with fellow artists who work in glass to be as invaluable as the education she received in her two weeks at The Studio.

The AIDA scholarship has enabled Lisbeth to take time off from her busy life to “think glass for two weeks straight,” and concentrate on learning. Upon her return to Israel, she looks forward to using her expanded skill set to teach the next generation of Israeli glass artists.

Learn more about scholarships at The Studio.

Back to the Basics: Celebrity Cruise Scholarship recipient Lauren Hunt

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Lauren Hunt Celebrity Cruises Glassmaking Scholarship recipient Lauren Hunt moved to Corning in 2011 after graduating from Virginia Commonwealth University, where she studied glass under Jack Wax and Emilio Santini. She has worked in the Make Your Own Glass workshop at The Studio and is currently auditioning with the Hot Glass Show for the chance to blow glass aboard a Celebrity cruise ship.

The scholarship she received this summer allowed her to take Boyd Sugiki and Lisa Zerkowitz’s class, A Step-by-Step Approach, a class which revisited basic shapes and designs. The purpose of this class was for students to touch up the fundamental skills that may have been lost along the way as they have progressed further into their glassmaking. In the week-long class, students focused on the size of their gathers, working with thinner pieces of glass, and using heat and gravity to their advantage to make basic forms such as cylinders, cones, and bowls. “This is bringing me back to all my basic skills, and it’s teaching me how to relieve all my bad habits and really watch the glass a little closer,” says Lauren, who found this class beneficial after working with glass for about four years.

 

Drawn to functional forms more than abstract designs, and inspired by makers such as Boyd and The Studio’s own resident artist Bill Gudenrath, Lauren gets motivation from her surroundings at The Studio. The skill of these masters is “what you strive for,” and Lauren listed skill building among her main goals for taking the class. “I hope I have a better understanding of how to make these basic forms. I hope I can utilize it in my own time whenever I want to start my own work. I can always reference back to Boyd’s class and always have my notes with me.”

Celebrity Cruises Glassmaking Scholarship recipient Lauren Hunt

Boyd Sugiki working with Lauren Hunt at The Studio

Access to the Museum is one of the greatest benefits of taking a class at The Studio. The Museum houses the largest comprehensive glass collection in the world, giving students the opportunity to go through the history of glassmaking. “You can get inspired all over again and take it back into The Studio with you,” says Lauren. Another benefit to taking Studio classes is that students have the opportunity to watch the other classes in session during the week, providing a glimpse of other techniques and designs.

The assistance of the Celebrity Cruises Glassmaking Scholarship has allowed Lauren to allocate her personal resources for the tools necessary for the class, and has also allowed her the means to be able to take another class later in the summer at the Penland School of Crafts in North Carolina. “The Studio has given me a lot of opportunities,” from giving her the means to continue her glass education outside of college to the chance to build relationships with artists and experts in glass.

Learn more about the Celebrity Cruises Glassmaking Scholarship Fund, and others.

Shaping color in the kiln: Celebrity Cruise Scholarship recipient Cory Dunnington at The Studio

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“Glass is a big part of my life,” says Cory Dunnington, a glass artist from Phoenix, Arizona. She began making glass at the age of 19 when her mother taught her some stained glass techniques. Along with stained glass, Cory also makes fused and cast glass art, and was recently able to take Heike Brachlow’s kilnworking class, Shaping Color: From Raw Materials to Finished Sculpture at The Studio because she received a scholarship from the Celebrity Cruises Glassmaking Scholarship Fund, which is supported by the purchase of glass artworks made by Hot Glass Show staff onboard Celebrity Cruises.

 

In this class, students learned how to create color in glass with metal oxides and were able to see the effects on the color if the oxide content was changed, even in small amounts. Color inspires much of Cory’s work, and this class gave her the unique opportunity to create the colors she wanted to work with. With this new skill, she says, “so many doors are opening.” Throughout the week-long class, each student made two colors and plaster-based molds, and melted their colored glass into a billet, or a brick of cast glass, which was then cut and polished to finalize the piece.

Cory Dunnington and Heike Brachlow at The Studio of The Corning Museum of Glass

Cory and instructor Heike Brachlow discuss color at The Studio.

Cory found herself “so impressed with everything” at The Studio, from the top-notch facilities, to the professionalism of the staff, to the lifetime connections she was able to make with the Museum, the Rakow Research Library, photographers, and other artists. By networking with the community at The Studio, she has made supportive contacts that she can call at any time in the future with questions or ideas.

Primarily, she says the greatest benefit to her week at The Studio is, “I’m here, and I’m learning,” and she could not be more grateful for the opportunity afforded to her through the Celebrity scholarship to expand her knowledge of glass. “The experience has been totally life changing and inspirational.”

Cory Dunnington

Michael Costa, Cory Dunnington and Jennifer Betz in Heike Brachlow’s Shaping Color class at The Studio.

Learn more about the Celebrity Cruises Glassmaking Scholarship Fund, and others.

Celebrity Cruise Scholarship recipient Gayla Lee learns murrine making techniques at The Studio

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Gayla Lee was first entranced by glass at the age of eight when she encountered a glassblower at a Renaissance festival. Her fascination with the material eventually led her to an apprenticeship in a Baltimore glass studio at the age of 20. After a couple years of working with glass herself, she began making trips to Corning in order to take classes with artists such as Mark Matthews, Robin Cass, and Bill Gudenrath at The Studio.

Gayla Lee

Gayla Lee working at The Studio

After taking several classes, Gayla began to ask, “What can I do to be here more?”  Now she can be found in Corning half a dozen times a year or so to work as a teaching assistant for artists such as Mark Ditzler, Josh Simpson, and Yoko Yagi, as well as to teach classes in fusing techniques.

Gayla has had the opportunity to share her knowledge with others and to learn through working with other artists. She notes, however, that “it can be difficult for working artists to have access to professional development” due to time and financial restraints. Recently, she was awarded the Celebrity scholarship to take Davide Salvadore’s class, Creating and Using Murrine – her first glassblowing class in six years.

Gayla Lee and Davide Salvadore Creating and Using Murrine at The Studio of The Corning Museum of Glass

Gayla Lee and Davide Salvadore

In this class, students pulled cane to form simple components, which were then fused together to form a pattern, repulled, and cut into murrine. Rather than entering the class with a specific goal or concept in mind, Gayla was intrigued by learning nontraditional methods of making murrine and watching a true master put these pieces to use.  Gayla’s work often features geometric patterns and tessellations, and learning from Salvadore, she has been able to gather ideas and expand her skills in the week-long class.

 

“[Studio classes] are very conducive to creativity,” she explains, “everything you need, Corning provides,” from tools and glass to access to affordable food and lodging. “Everything you need to know is probably already here,” she says, referring to the wealth of information and inspiration at the Museum and the Rakow Research Library.

Though Gayla resides in Annapolis, Maryland, her close relationship with The Studio provides her with a comfortable creative outlet away from home. “I do a lot of my work up here,” she says, adding enthusiastically, “I’ve never been to a nicer glass studio.”

Learn more about the Celebrity Cruises Glassmaking Scholarship Fund, and others.

Local glassblower Dane Jack receives Celebrity Cruise Scholarship

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As a Corning native and the younger brother of a glassblower, Dane Jack was exposed to glass from a young age. He has worked diligently for many years to develop his glassmaking skills.

Training on the Hot Glass Show stage under master glassblowers, Dane learned through repetition and gained muscle memory to make objects for demonstrations. “I wanted to learn the foundation of manipulating the material,” he says. By taking classes at The Studio, assisting other artists in the hot shop, and renting the Studio facilities to practice on his own, Dane quickly gained proficiency in the basics.

Over time, his work has become “technique-based rather than conceptual,” and, these days, he focuses on mastering advanced techniques. This dedication and perseverance has paid off, as he now travels for part of the year with the Hot Glass Show aboard Celebrity Cruises, demonstrating glassblowing in exciting places such as the Caribbean and the Mediterranean.

Inspired by the colors at sea and the architecture of the cities where the ship docked, Dane experiments on stage. “The opportunity to make whatever you want in a glassblowing job is priceless,” he recognizes, and, because the Hot Glass Shows at sea can last a couple of hours, the team has the freedom to create more elaborate pieces.

At the end of each cruise, three to six pieces of glass art are sold at an auction, with proceeds benefiting a scholarship fund for Studio glassmaking classes.

Dane himself was a recent recipient of a Celebrity Scholarship. Receiving a scholarship for the Winter 2012 session allowed Dane to take Dan Mirer’s Glassblowing, Design, Production class, which emphasized mold making for faster and more efficient production work. The class spent much of the week-long session in the coldworking shop shaping molds, a process which intrigues Dane as he hopes to incorporate mold blowing techniques to create a production line in the future.

Dane Jack making a mold at The Studio of The Corning Museum of Glass

Making a mold at The Studio

The community at The Studio has always been a supportive one.  There’s always some one around who can collaborate, bringing a quick bit of glass while he’s working on a piece or offering advice when he’s stuck on a process. Dane has rented time at The Studio to work on his own art, has taken classes, and has even worked in The Studio’s Make Your Own Glass area.

Dane’s story is not unique. The Studio and the Museum work hard to support and develop glass artists, by employing talented artists like Dane, providing scholarships, offering classes and providing a community that encourages exploration of glass.

Learn more about the Celebrity Cruise Scholarship fund, and others.