In my sessions in glass we started by cutting circles of glass and learning how to create pieces using fibreboard and how to manipulate the shape of glass using it. The task of that morning was to create a glass piece based off of the theme 'water'.
The first step of this was creating circles of glass. Using a compass and cutting blade I traced a circle into the glass using the blade. I then used the blade to cut diagonal lines leading out of the circle and this was to create a path for the circle to break out of. I then used my thumbs to press along the circle and try to break out of the glass. The first circle did pretty well but the bigger circle I created had to have some pieces chipped off the side of the table. I quite liked the effect this made as it created an ice like effect which is connected to the theme.
The second part of this task is using the fibreboard. Using a cutting mat and a Stanley knife I created small irregular circles and layered these up underneath each piece of glass. The idea of this was to create a ripple effect, especially when both the pieces of glass were put on top of each other. We then put these pieces in the kiln, making sure that the batwash was on and that the glass pieces weren't too near to each other in order to not fuse together during the firing.
When the pieces came out, I had to wear a mask and take the fibreboard off of the glass pieces as the fired fibreboard is can be dangerous unless precautions are put in place. I then used a special vacuum to take as much fibre board off of the glass and then cleaned the rest off using water.
I think that the pieces came out well although I would've liked the top circle to be more central when sat on the bottom piece of glass.
I learnt how to blow a glass piece using clear glass, this was a good session as I was able to learn the basics of glass blowing and learn how to communicate better with other people in my class in the hot shop. It was also a great way to get used to the work within the hot shop and getting better at gathering the glass on an iron. This session ended up being really useful when creating the rest of my material samples over the next few weeks.
During this session I learnt how to add colour to glass using glass powder. I applied this to making a paperweight, this meant that when I added different colour and manipulated the glass using tweezers, I then covered the piece in another layer of clear glass and then shaped and created a fracture point using jacks. In the last session, I had not been very good at using jacks and was not able to create a fracture point that broke, this session I improved this skill and was able to break the piece off the iron. I also enjoyed shaping the piece using the paper and I think this improved confidence when using hot glass on an iron.
Above is the paperweight after coldworking.
In this session I created blue and green canes and was able to create different thicknesses, the thicker canes being annealed by the technician. I used some of these canes to create a small glass piece, the canes were added to an optic mould and I added the glass to the mould. I then shaped the piece to make it round using paper and then created a fracture point to create a smaller piece than expected. What I learn't from this piece is that I should've used the marver to shape the glass so that more glass was available at the end of the iron for me to use.
In this session I was tasked with making a starfish, the piece didn't really go to plan, however, I enjoyed using different tools to create this shape and I thought that the folds that came out were really interesting. Maybe if I created a bigger piece it could've been a lid for one of my cups as part of my final outcome as I feel like the curves match really well with the theme of the fabric that I have used within my final design.
I created a glass piece inspired by Ancient Greek ceramics using the skills I had learnt over the past few weeks including making paperweights, manipulating hot glass on the end of an iron and using colour. I started the piece by using the marver to have as much glass on the end of my iron - a tip that I had learnt to improve my hot glass pieces after the week before - and then added colour to the piece using pink powder. I then used jacks and tweezers to create a pot form with a small hole on the top of the glass to make it look like a vase. I then added glass over the top and a jackline to finish the piece. I found when added glass over the top, shaping it and turning the piece round in such a hot space manipulated the piece that enlarged the 'vase' and created made it less symmetrical. If I had more time maybe this could've inspired forms for my final outcomes.
In the last week I coldworked the four pieces I had created and it refreshed my memory on coldworking from last year. I found that as the pieces were quite small, they were a little easier to coldwork than other pieces from the past and although I feel like the coldworking isn't perfect. I was able to smooth over and flatten the fracture points and I feel like the pieces sat well.
Overall, I really enjoyed making these glass pieces and within my next project I will want to learn more techniques and build on the skills that I have learnt during this project. I also think that looking at ways of combining glass and ceramics within a piece could be really interesting.