Jenny Woolery's Hydrologic, 2010 Recipient of the People's Choice Award
Suzanne Greenlee's Heart Chakra, 2009 Winner of the Staff's Favorite Award
Dennis Walker's Fish and Seashells, 2010
Guustie Alvarado's Sunflower "BFF", 2010
This year many students and instructors participated in the exhibition Reflection/Refraction II, including instructors: Ralph Prince, Larry Hawkins, Tom Herman, Guustie Alvarado, and Aimee Sones; and students Jenny Woolery, Ann Mullin, Dennis Walker, Suzanne Greenlee, Deb McInturff, Deb Trimbach, Davina Anderson and Debbie Clauer. The work of these artists was diverse, showing a range in techniques such as mosaics, blown glass, pate de verre, fused glass, flameworked beads and stained glass.
Show Curator and Instructor- Glassblowing, Casting, Pate de Verre and Fusing
Reflection/Refraction II refers to both the properties of glass to reflect or refract light and the relationship among instructors and students, as ideas and technical information is transferred back and forth. The glass work in this show comes to us from both instructors and students at the InterfaceArtSchool; the work represents a wide variety of artistic style and techniques made by over a dozen artists. Classes in glassblowing, glass fusing and casting, stained glass and mosaics are offered throughout the year and the work in the show truly represents the creative spirit embodied by instructors and students alike.
While there are many glass artists in the area, this blog focuses on the activities at the Arts Interface Creative School of Visual Art classes, activities, exhibitions, instructor and student work. To get more information on classes please call 937-325-1640 or click here. If you are a local artist using glass and you'd like to be more involved or featured on the blog please contact Aimee at aimeesones@gmail.com
Glassblowing students Ann Mullin and Jim Griffin hard at work in the studio!
Interface Studio of Glass Works
ArtsInterfaceCreativeGroupSchool of Visual Art
In 1997 Dr. Robert Beam and his wife Sally founded Springfield’s only glass program and studio with the help of regional glass artist Ralph Prince. Dr. Beam’s love and talent for creating various forms of glass art and his considerate philanthropic spirit also led to the establishment of classes in stained glass and beadmaking.The glassblowing studio was originally established in an available room within the Springfield Museum of Art School, now owned and operated by the Arts Interface Creative Group since 2007, and located within the SpringfieldArtsCenter at WittenbergUniversity, 2010.
Today, with program expansions funded by The H.M. Turner Foundation and a Springfield Foundation gift left by the late Dr. Beam, the Interface Studio of Glass Works has expanded to include classes in mosaics, fusing, images on glass, glass casting and mold making.The studio has developed many artist affiliates and instructors locally, nationally and internationally recognized, such as Ralph Prince, Larry Hawkins, Tom Hermann, Susan Broidy, Guustie Alvarado and Aimee Sones.The Interface Studio of Glass Works remains Springfield’s only hot glass shop; teaching multiple techniques with glass, and is open to the public for classes and observation.Educational instruction is available in all techniques used for beginners to advanced students. One day workshops and four to eight week long classes are offered for teenage and adult students including a variety of creative experiences with glass.The Arts Interface Creative Group School of Visual Art is proud to remain a popular and functional destination for glass enthusiasts, artists and shoppers.A quarterly class schedule is published and mailed, or guests may find the schedule at www.artsinterface.org which includes full class descriptions.
Glassblowing-a furnace melts the glass at 2100 degrees Fahrenheit and students use various tools to blow and shape the glass into solid or vessel forms.
Stained glass-students cut sheets of colorful glass to make unique designs using copper foil or lead cane.
Kiln formed glass-tiny bits of glass are added to sheets of glass and placed in a kiln and fused together, sometimes they are placed in a mold and slumped into a plate or bowl shape, plaster and silica molds can be made and solid glass sculptures can be cast inside.
Mosaics-students use a variety of beautiful glass and ceramic pieces and arrange them on a board or object and add grout to make whimsical objects.
Jenny Woolery's Hydrologic, 2010
