The Gathering in Rochester

The Gathering is well under way in Rochester NY and I've been enjoying the pre-conference activities and catching up with old friends and meeting new ones.

Wednesday, I was lucky and got to go on a tour to the Corning Glass Museum guided by Marshall Hyde.

I'll try to post more photos, but there is so much going on, they might show up after I'm home next week. I have the big Bead Bazaar tomorrow. I'll be debuting my new Balance Series and Mother Nature Series. Cross your fingers for me.

I'll still be blogging my 6 days a week- so keep reading. I'll have new glass goodie photos for you asap.

Byeee! See you later...

Need More Smiling Faces for My Gathering Class

Here are my most recent (2) sets of two- day class students. See their smiling faces? They had a good time and so did I.

I need everyone's help to get the word out. As you know, the Gathering's attendance is down a bit this year and I'm a little bummed that my class isn't 100% full. It's not in jeopardy of being canceled, but I'd sure love to fill it up. There are just a couple of spaces left.

I don't just teach sculptural beadmaking. Oh really you ask? Well, there are so many techniques that relate to other styles of beadmaking too. Yes, the beads are sculptural and you learn lots of techniques that relate to being able to make lots of sculptural beads, but it's much more. We work on heat control, shaping, resources, creativity, how to think like me (a bit scary, isn't it?), inspiration, learning how to look at 3-D items and 2-D pictures and interpret them into beads, canes, surface decoration, using tools in non-traditional ways and my favorite part- fun. I'm a big fan of fun for everyone.

And there's more. You see, I don't usually tell you until after you sign up for my class, but I have a special private blog just for my students. It includes photos and step by step tutorials of each of the beads we've made (plus additional info), so that you don't need to take as detailed notes. You can focus on watching the demos so you don't miss a thing, then you can go to the blog and copy or just review the steps. Easy peasy. You can also ask questions on that blog that don't relate to the beads you learned. You see, once my student- always my student. Star treatment for all.

Here's where to find my Gathering class, If you have further questions, please email me at StudioMarcy@gmail.com. Thanks so much. I've got my fingers crossed that you can help me fill it up. I really want to teach more smiling faces.

p.s. If you're already one of my registered students, thank you so very much.

Leopold and Rudolph Blaschka- Glass Artists

Rudolph and Leopold Blaschka were a German father and son team of glass artists who were hired by Harvard University to make glass flowers for their botany department in the late 1800's. They also were known for their representations of invertabrate sea life.

You can see their story on the Corning Museum's video here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rHOx5H5vNx4

Or you can read about them here: http://www.journalofantiques.com/Feb04/featurefeb04.htm

I saw their Harvard exhibit while attending the International Society of Glass Beadmaker's (ISGB) Gathering in Lowell, MA a few years ago. Their work was magnificent. And thinking back to the exhibit, and now to the changes that have been made in the glass world- tools, equipment, types and colors of glass, it makes their artistry even more astounding.

Often times, lampworkers discuss whether glass is "art" or "craft". This topic will continue to be argued long after I'm gone. To me, I don't know how you can call their glass botany and sea life anything but "Art".