Alden B. Dow

I have been asked to bid on a job that incorporates the philosophies of Alden B Dow. I have to admit I did not know much about him until this project fell in my lap.

In researching him, I have been very intrigued by "the man", his views on life, art, and humanity in general. I love the Way of Life Cycle that is referenced so much. Click on any link that refers to him and you will find the Way of Life Cycle. It is definitely worth the time it takes to read through each area and think about how it pertains to your life, work, art, etc. I enjoy hearing about people who are not only good artists, but good people as well. Reading through the materials needed for this project, it is obvious how much he cared about the betterment of all people and strove to provide that through his work and life.

Can't wait to move forward with this project. I am planning on putting in a bid with a friend of mine who blows glass, Lorenzo Cristaudo. His work is wonderful and I enjoy him as a person. Check out his web site as well. We will be taking art lessons, along with my son and another student starting this week from Bud (Virtus) Gale. Can't wait!

Links:
Lorenzo Cristaudo www.glassartists.org/Gal8689_The_Glass_Infinity_Lorenzo_Cristaudo.asp
Alden B Dow: www.abdow.org

Enjoy this bright, sunny day. At least that is what is happening in Michigan. Heading out now for a bike ride through the Irish Hills!

Pat

The Kiln Is On!!!!

Following up with yesterday's blog, I told you about my next project. I'll call this one, "At The Lake", and will be showing it at the Tecumseh Center For The Arts. The pallet of colors shows how I work with the glass. It is crushed into a variety of sizes, from about 1/4" to powdered glass. I layer it as I go along. The photo at the far left shows what it looks like in the kiln now, just prior to turning the kiln on.

And, Thank God I am writing this blog. After spending hours working on this piece, while I was writing this entry and describing the process... I realized I left my framework on my kiln shelf. What I mean by that is, as I am layering the glass in the kiln, I use metal framing to keep the shards in line so I have an even edge when it is fused together. Once the layering is done and prior to turning on the kiln, I remove those edges.

What is interesting to me, is seeing the photo of the glass. It actually gives me a much clearer picture of what the finished piece will look like than what I see with my own eyes. Of course, once fused, it will look even more different that what you see here because the glass pieces will have much softer edges.

Ok, back to work. I'll post a photo of the finished piece when done.

Pat Deere

Show Details: Tecumseh Center For The Arts, Art Glass Month Exhibit, Featuring: Lorenzo Cristaudo, Linda Jacobs, Pat Deere, Dates: March 28th - May 2, Reception: March 28th

Art in the making.

Today I am starting on a new piece, using the same techniques I used on, "The Forest Through the Trees". I love working on pieces like these because they are so spontaneous.

The photo you see in the center is my inspiration. This came from a stop I made on a bike trip last year with my son, Matthew, my sister Stacy, and her daughter Shelby. Matthew and I were riding together at this point, and I am embarrassed to say, we almost caused a collision because I wanted to stop and get this photo. If you have ever had the opportunity to view the great lakes, you will know why I was so excited. If you have never had that opportunity, you really need to come and visit us. The blues and turquoise, and greens... are awesome. So, my job is to capture it in glass.

The technique I am using for this piece is to take an assortment of glass colors, using Spectrum System 96, cutting and hammering it into a variety of sizes. I will begin to layer it on a kiln shelf thick enough to be sure it all adheres well when I take it out of the kiln. What it gives is a beautiful palet of color and texture that can't be duplicated any other way.

I have some work in a show being hosted by the Hidden Lake Gardens and the Lenawee Council for the visual arts. The photo in a previous blog post, of my "Forest Through The Trees" shows you what it looks like prior to going through the kiln ( I couldn't get the photo to show up here - sorry). To see the finished piece, you can visit the Hidden Lake Gardens in the Irish Hills, Michigan through the middle of May. This new piece I am working on can be seen by visiting the show going on at the Tecumseh Center For The Arts during Art Glass Month. This show features three glass artists: Myself - Pat Deere, Stained Glass; Lorenzo Cristaudo, Blown Glass; and Linda Jacobs, Glass Mosaic.

Once I place all of the glass in the kiln the way I would like it to look, I close the kiln and slowly heat it to about 1400 degrees. I really pay more attention to the way it looks than the temperature it is at. I want the glass to be melted enough to hold together when picked up, but not so melted that I lose the wonderful texture that I am going after.

Once the process of fusing, annealing, and cooling is done... I will incorporate the fused panel into a finished stained glass panel. Come to the shows to take a peak, or I'll try to put photos up on my blog when I'm done.

Classes: Right now I am still offering individual, one-on-one learning opportunities. Fusing is a fun technique to learn for stand alone pieces, or to incorporate into a finished piece like I am doing here.

Custom Stained Glass: I have another custom project I am quoting. It is for a customer north of me and their logo is rustic in nature, including deer and evergreens. This technique will be one of the options I will offer to them in order to give them a design they won't find anywhere else.

Pat Deere