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Make-It-Now: Fused Glass Suncatcher
Join us on the first Friday of each month for our Hot Jam and open house with live glassblowing and flameworking demonstrations. Check out the gallery, explore the studios, shop for glass art, and now make your own glass!
Make-It-Now Fused Glass Suncatcher
Make a unique glass decoration. In this introductory experience, you'll combine colorful pieces of glass granules (frit) and thin colorful glass rods (stringers) to create a decorative glass suncatcher of your own design. Once you design it, we’ll fire it in a kiln with a hook for hanging.
Registration is suggested, but not required, for Fused Glass Suncatcher. Walk in seats are subject to availability.
Registration is not required for Hot Jam Open House.
Make-It-Now experiences offer a quick, hands-on introduction to the colorful world of kilnformed glass. In the kiln shop, you’ll learn from a skilled local artist how to design and assemble your own glass creation using glass frit and stringers. In less than an hour, explore how layers of glass come together to form vibrant patterns and images of your own design. Perfect for beginners, these quick experiences let you discover the beauty of working with glass at your own pace and with no heat.
Ages 5+
Adult supervision is required for any children under 14 years old.
Due to the nature of hot glass, items cannot be taken home the same day they are created. All items made in the kiln shop must be heated and fused in the kiln, then cooled slowly. Items are available for pick-up after 5 days. Shipping can be arranged on site the day of your activity.
Fusing and Slumping
Ready to turn up the heat on your glass skills? Whether you’re brand new to flat glass or have taken a workshop or two, this in-depth 6-hour introductory workshop will help expand your technical know-how and creative techniques. You’ll learn glass tool fundamentals and glass cutting techniques while gaining an understanding of glass compatibility, fusing and slumping techniques, mold materials, firing schedules, and kiln theory. By the end of the day, you’ll have a set of functional glass items (plates, bowls, and platters) in the kiln and an appreciation for the alchemy of kilnformed glass.
Note: Class time includes a 30-minute break for lunch. Lunch is not provided, but we do have a refrigerator on site if needed.
Ages 14+
Due to the nature of hot glass, your items will be available for pickup 5 days after your activity.
Stained Glass Garden Gnome
Bring some whimsy to your garden. In this introductory 4-hour workshop, you’ll create a charming gnome garden stake for your indoor pots or outdoor garden. Under the guidance of a skilled instructor, you’ll learn essential stained glass techniques including cutting glass, copper foiling, following a pattern, soldering, and assembling as you make a two-dimensional garden stake.
It’ll be gnome-tastic fun from start to finish, and you’ll leave with a whimsical piece ready to brighten your greenery.
Ages 14+
Advanced Pattern Making in Kilnformed Glass
with Ian Chadwick
Symmetry can be used as a fundamental design tool. Symmetry is used by man and nature as a device to add continuity, balance, and harmony to a chaotic universe. Its use in art and design, consequently, attains an aesthetic of order and familiarity.
In this five-day class, you will explore principles of advanced pattern forming in fused glass. Ian will share the techniques he has perfected to produce accurate linear geometric glass artworks.
Using pre-formed Bullseye colored glass striped sheets, you will expand your knowledge and experience of kilnforming and coldworking techniques to produce intricate patterns which utilize symmetry and geometry to create hypnotizing mandala-like patterns.
You will be guided through the creation of Bullseye glass striped sheets which once fired will be deconstructed and reassembled. Learn how the arrangement of tone and color can enhance the optical properties of the pattern design and how to lay out the pattern using principles of four-fold symmetry. Utilizing these concepts and techniques, you will create a 25cm x 25cm glass tile.
In addition, the class will produce a small square tile, utilizing Ian's latest method of production. This tile will be used to introduce a new surface finishing technique involving hand polishing to a fine satin finish.
You will be guided through all aspects of the class, but intermediate glass cutting skills are required since the class involves a lot of glass cutting.
Evening Open Studio
Studios are open until 9:30PM for students to practice. Depending on the class, process, and techniques, this time might be highly suggested by instructors for students to use. In other classes, this time might be considered optional.
For more information, please review Summer Intensives.
Learn more about Ian Chadwick at www.ianchadwickglassart.co.uk
Two-layer Enhanced Pattern Building in Kilnformed Glass
with Ian Chadwick
Take your pattern making in glass up a level…. to two layers!!
In this five-day class with Ian Chadwick, you will explore how the arrangement and use of transparent colors can produce intriguing geometric patterns within two layers of glass.
Using Bullseye stringers you’ll learn the principles of accurate stringer arrangement and explore how deliberate arrangement can create striking geometric compositions. From there, the class will investigate the possibilities of cutting and arranging geometric components and the transformative effects of layering transparent linear patterns.
We will cover principles of glass cutting and coldworking and produce a panel and a drop through vase with which we will cover the process of rim removal and coldworking with Silicon Carbide or diamond abrasive lap wheels.
Students must be of an intermediate level as accurate hand cutting of glass is fundamental to this class. Techniques to improve your cutting, and ultimately your confidence, will be covered.
Evening Open Studio
Studios are open until 9:30PM for students to practice. Depending on the class, process, and techniques, this time might be highly suggested by instructors for students to use. In other classes, this time might be considered optional.
For more information, please review Summer Intensives.
Learn more about Ian Chadwick at www.ianchadwickglassart.co.uk
Glass Cartographies: Image to Form
with Josefina Muñoz Torres
This class invites illustrators, painters, designers, photographers, and anyone interested in the graphic image to experiment with the possibilities of pictorial representation on glass. You will explore kiln-based processes such as fusing, slumping, layering, draping, and incorporating images through both digital and analog approaches.
The five-day class emphasizes developing a personal visual language while investigating the interplay of transparency, image, texture, and form. A collaborative spirit will be encouraged, with projects that capture, distort, and reinterpret landscapes, memories, and visual narratives.
Students will produce a series of small experimental works as technical studies and one finished piece integrating glass enameling, photo transfer, and layering. By the end of the class, you will be able to independently operate a glass kiln and sandblaster, and confidently translate your imagery onto glass.
This class welcomes all skill levels. It can be an excellent option for people with no glass experience and also for glassblowers who want to incorporate imagery into their blown shapes. All are encouraged to take advantage of open studio hours.
Evening Open Studio
Studios are open until 9:30PM for students to practice. Depending on the class, process, and techniques, this time might be highly suggested by instructors for students to use. In other classes, this time might be considered optional.
For more information, please review Summer Intensives.
Learn more about Josefina Muñoz Torres at www.josefinamunoz.net
Non-Traditional Pâte de Verre
with Evelyn Gottschall Baker
One of the greatest challenges in kilnformed glass is capturing intricate detail in finished work. This hands-on five-day class introduces students to non-traditional Pâte de Verre techniques—an innovative approach to working with glass paste at low temperatures without the use of investment molds. You will learn how to recreate real or imagined objects in striking detail, while also exploring methods that lend themselves to expressive abstraction.
Through demonstrations, discussion, and guided practice, you will explore:
- Silicone Molds – Make replicas of small objects using two types of silicone molds: one with common household caulking, and another with two-part pourable silicone rubber.
- Freeform Sculpting – Shape glass paste directly using simple tools such as palette knives, creating unique forms without molds.Color Samples – Create and test color swatches, learning how low-fire schedules affect color maturity and how to achieve desired visual outcomes.
- Exploring Binders – Experiment with three different binders, comparing their strengths and weaknesses for various applications.
- Dry Working – Develop methods for refining detail, smoothing surfaces, and preparing pieces for successful firing.
- Cold Working – Develop methods for cleaning and refining surfaces after firing.
- Technical Discussions – Gain insight into low-fire kilnforming challenges, including managing shrinkage, balancing thin and thick areas, fusing schedules, and kiln support strategies.
By the end of the course, students will have a toolkit of practical techniques for shaping glass paste into forms rich with texture, depth, and detail—equally suited for realism or abstraction.
Advanced beginners are welcome, however they must have some understanding of firing schedules and heat work in a kiln.
Evening Open Studio
Studios are open until 9:30PM for students to practice. Depending on the class, process, and techniques, this time might be highly suggested by instructors for students to use. In other classes, this time might be considered optional.
For more information, please review Summer Intensives.
Learn more about Evelyn Gottschall Baker at www.glassfractions.com
Experimental Kilnforming with Recycled Glass
with Morgan Gilbreath
Learn how to embrace the unique working properties of found, recycled, and manufactured glass. In this experimental five-day class, you’ll be introduced to the creative possibilities of repurposed glass in the kiln and cold shop. Guided by demonstrations and technical lectures, we will complete a fast-paced series of kiln tests and small sculptures utilizing various types of found and collected glass.
Evening Open Studio
Studios are open until 9:30PM for students to practice. Depending on the class, process, and techniques, this time might be highly suggested by instructors for students to use. In other classes, this time might be considered optional.
For more information, please review Summer Intensives.
Learn more about Morgan Gilbreath at www.morgangilbreath.com