The other day, I had the opportunity to speak with amazing glass artist Jen Pitts. Her bead designs run the gamut of styles, colors and details — each is a handcrafted, miniature piece of artwork! So what exactly is involved in the lampwork process? Read on…
How did you become involved with glass work?
About ten years ago I was working as an IT Director for a non-profit company in Oberlin, Ohio, and there was a very cool bead shop I would visit after work — I’m allergic to most metals and making my own jewelry allowed me to have glass and gemstones next to my skin instead of metal.
I LOVED the artisan glass and wanted to use it in my designs, but it was expensive! I had a fantastic unexpected bonus that year, and I decided to give glass a try. I did a ton of research and invested in great equipment and a nice selection of glass, and it turned out to be so much more rewarding than I ever would have guessed. I’ve been a glass addict ever since!
During the first three years, I learned through research and controlled experimentation. I took a class with a well known artist and was really glad I’d waited. Turns out I’m a pretty serious rule breaker, and some of my best work would never have seen the light of day if I’d been constrained by the knowledge of those rules up front.
This past December I gave up my “real” job to pursue glass art full-time, and I can’t tell you how amazing that’s been! The other day I was sitting in my studio preparing rods for my next torch session, cat in lap, favorite music on, husband coring beads on the other side of the studio, and I realized how different my life and work was.
I don’t miss the corporate world. Not the ladder, not the suits, not the drive, not the sleepless nights, and certainly not the feeling that all of my energy was being spent on a meaningless pursuit.
I get to create little works of art every day with these hands, and I get to connect with people in such a meaningful way through those little works of art. And I get to do all of that from my home surrounded by my family, cats and dog.
When did you get involved with bead design? What is unique about creating beads?
Though I love all forms of glass art and practice quite a few, my favorite method is lampworking — using a surface mix oxygen/propane torch to melt glass into small sculptures, vessels and beads. There’s something mesmerizing about having molten glass right there in my hands, moving, changing, challenging and rewarding me in real time with an infinite number of possible outcomes.
It’s pretty amazing how much depth and detail you can achieve even with the smallest beads! Each one is a unique, portable work of art, and it never ceases to amaze me how strongly we can connect with them. That I can produce something with these hands and contribute to that connection is a privilege.
Is anyone else involved in the process?
I collaborate closely with my husband John, who does most of the metalsmithing and photography, and both of our sons, T.J. and Ty are lampwork artists as well. I am very fortunate to have their support — we make a good team!
How long does it take to make a bead?
Ah now that depends! A small, simple bead can be produced in the flame in less than three minutes, though it must then sit in the kiln to slowly cool for several hours before it’s ready to be cleaned up and used.
More complex beads often have many layers of powdered, crushed and melted glass, and can include precious metals and other materials to make them more interesting — those can take up to an hour in the flame!
Can you explain the actual process?
The life of a bead begins by dipping a metal rod (referred to as a mandrel) into a clay solution so that the melted glass can be removed at the end of the process.
The lampworker then uses one hand to heat the metal mandrel in the flame and the other hand to carefully heat a glass rod in the flame — if you heat the glass too quickly it will shatter, spewing hot glass everywhere. Watching a lampworker is a little like watching a dance, hands are moving gracefully in concert at all times.
A bead may be just one color or have layer after layer of melted glass and metal to achieve a complex “beadscape.” The bead may be rolled in crushed or powdered glass, or flattened, pulled, pushed and pressed with anything from a professional brass mold to a repurposed dental pick (one of my personal favorites!)
The bead then goes into a computer-controlled kiln, which is basically a box made of fire bricks that has computer-controlled heating elements to gradually reduce the temperature of the glass over a period of several hours. This process is referred to as annealing, and it is CRITICAL that glass is annealed properly or else it is extremely fragile.
The cooled beads are then soaked in water to dissolve the clay so the bead can be pulled off of the metal mandrel, which leaves the hole. The size of the hole is determined by the size of the mandrel used.
The last step is to clean out any of the clay that still might be hanging out in the bead — that can be done with a simple hand file or with a dremel-like tool as we do (we clean A LOT of beads!)
Where do you get your materials, and is there a difference in materials?
About 80% of our glass comes from Italy, and the rest is American specialty glass, with a small amount of German and Asian glass as well.
We select glass for compatibility, quality of color, and how well it behaves in the flame, and we test every new batch ourselves before using it in our work. It is typical, and in my opinion part of the charm of working with glass, for each batch to be slightly different — that gives a unique quality to each of our little works of art.
Where do you get inspiration for your unique designs?
Everywhere! I cannot look at ANYTHING without seeing its possibilities in glass or jewelry. My work is often described as organic because of the natural patterns and palettes I tend to use. I like balance but avoid perfect/rigid symmetry.
What’s on the horizon for you creatively?
More sculptural glass, mixing glass and metal, larger vessels and sculptures, and experimentation with glass casting with metal inclusions … and perhaps publishing some of my bead techniques and formulas.
Some of Jen’s amazing work can be viewed at www.velvetboxart.com.
-Susan
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