This is a good demonstration of how large pieces of hand blown glass art is made.
How hand-blown glass is made. Lee Miltier assisted by Chris Roscoe and Steve Nechodom. The temperature of the furnace is 1350 degrees Fahrenheit. (Until I realized I had a Gain feature on this camera and it was turned on, I thought the intensely bright-gold light from the glass being blown plus indoor/outdoor light difference threw the light of the camera out of balance and changed the true color of the heat in the furnaces and the molten glass from hot, blinding gold to soft green and white in the video. DUH.) So use your imagination about the color as you watch these amazingly skilled and experienced glass artists work in Berkeley, California, on July 30, 2009.
In this video you can see how blown glass is placed in a mold to shape the glass. This way you can get consistency in the glass which is especially needed when you are making a match set of glasses. This process is used in a production environment and not just a one-off process for hand blown glass art.
Steven Dale creating his custom mouth blown lighting fixtures and pendant lights for home and business installations. His lighting creations are in many private residences, bars, restaurants, and design houses throughout California and the United States.
There is quite a bit of misleading information out there about glassblowing and hand blown glass art. If you’ve ever thought about blowing glass as a hobby and were scared away because you thought it was too dangerous, then think again. Yes, there is some danger in the art of glass blowing when you first look at it – the idea of picking up molten glass with a rod an twirling it around could be considered very unsafe to some. However, with the proper training and care the art of blown glass can be very safe and there is no reason you can’t blown glass when you are well up in age. The real consideration here is really basic safety and care in handling the equipment so don’t let that deter you if you are considering going this for a hobby or a living for that matter.
When you are working with the molten glass, you will be exposed to some heat and therefore you should work in an area that is well ventilated and you should wear protective clothing. The accidents that do occur in glass blowing are generally caused by carelessness or by working in an area that is not properly ventilated. Basically you need to take the same type of precautionary measures as you would when you are working with electric work working tools such as band saws and the like. If you working carefully and understand what you are doing then the process can be quite safe.
Probably the key point in this if you are going to take on glass blowing is to get proper training from someone who is qualified to teach the art of glass blowing. If you are going to construct an area to blow glass around your home, then you need to investigate and adhere to the local safety regulations with regard to constructing and operating a glass blowing kiln.
I’m astounded with the amount of things you can do for art… and now I’ve discovered the use of glass for art, and i always wanted to try blowing glass. [...]
For those who are interested in glass blowing, the Bay Area Glass Institute (in San Jose) is doing a glass blowing demo by Jaime Guerrero this Thursday evening. Jaime has won many awards, and he is one of the most skilled artists in the country. [...]
I learned that in glass blowing, the expertise lies in knowing how the glass will react to heat and motion. It is an extremely sensitive process. Not particularly forgiving. It made me want to sell off all the glass I’ve ever collected [...]
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