Featured Artists

When Charity Stewart's mosaic mirror made of old Starbucks Gift Cards was posted to our Artist Gallery as part of our Recycled Arts Contest , I couldn't help but notice. Cheerily nicknamed "Momma Mosaics", Charity creates brightly colored art that is whimsical and playful. She has mastered the art of using paper under glass, and repurposing found objects. We caught up with her to ask her a few questions about her signature style. How did you get started in glass? I discovered the joy of glass at the age of 12, when I was introduced to stained glass art by my grandmother. She inspired me to explore my creative side as we worked side-by-side in her tiny basement studio, cutting and grinding pieces for a large window panel. Those lessons in creativity launched my interest in glass art and eventually led me to classes in fusing and mosaics. Why mosaics? Have you ever been obsess ed with finishing a puzzle? Making a mosaic is similar, but unlike a puzzle where the end result is always the same, mosaics give you have the freedom to create the puzzle as you go. My designs are never really too preplanned, I enjoy the flow of the process and often find tha

Glass Artist Karen Mamel had all but packed away her glass tools when she opened her E-mail inbox. Sharon Jones of Good Shepherd Hospice in Sebring, Florida was inquiring about a stained glass window in a newly built chapel. A man was donating the window in honor of his beloved wife. She had previously built windows for two other Florida Hospices and spent much of her free time visiting patients and volunteering for the organization. A cancer survivor and nurse, she felt a particular connection to the patients. She called friend and pattern designer, Lynda Chandler, to explain the challenge. The project was a five-and-a-half-foot round window facing west, Karen said. Beyond that, she had rece ived little direction. Sharon at Good Shepherd had seen our work before and trusted us to come up with a good design. Karen and Lynda got to work. The pair met more than five years prior and discovered a mutual love for the arts. Lynda, a botanical illustrator, had a talent for bringing landscapes to life on paper, and Karen, an accomplished glass artist, was looking for someone to design custom glass patterns. Their first project was a stunning 27-foot window in their church.

How did you get started in glass? I originally just did tile mosaics and then a friend sent me info on taking a class at Delphi for fused glass mosaics taught by Christine Stewart. I was hooked and had my own kiln within a few months. Why glass? Its infinitely easier than working with ceramic tile! I like the way the fused glass lets me incorporate rounded shapes with the hard edges of cut glass. Why is recycling important to you? I always take everyones leftovers tile, glass, wire, rocks, beads because you never know what project you can use even the smallest pieces in. Then you can elaborate: my friend gave me that, my neighbor was throwing that away. Im currently working with the Michigan Chapter of the IIDA and ZeroLandfill where they divert architectural samples from the landfill for upcycling. Its a wonderful way to get free goodies! How have your other interests/hobbies/career influenced your glass designs? Ive been a graphic designer by trade for my whole working career and glass lets me get out from behind the computer and get my hands dirty again. What inspires you? Nature and its textures. What makes your work

Carol Lancour can find beauty in just about anything. She jokes that she can look at a chunk of concrete and see potential. And while she says her friends think she's crazy, there is a greater purpose behind her vision. "For me, finding something discarded and repurposing it into something beautiful and useful is its own reward," she says. "I strive to make every project I undertake aesthetically pleasing, well-made and purposeful." Carol used to paint and draw to satiate her need to be creative, but she turned to glass when a friend showed her how to cut up stained glass for mosaics. She bought her first set of cutting tools from Delphi in 2000. "Glass comes in every beautiful color, refracts light and sparkles in the sun," she says. "I like the durability of something so fragile." Carol began creating mosaics with her cut up glass, starting with a mosaic flower pot. Her projects eventually grew to be much larger. "I don't know a lot of other people who do large-scale mosaic projects with pieces that are mostly hand cut and -inch or smaller, she says. Her favorite recycled project is an herb garden planter made from cinder blocks excavated from her back yard and

In keeping with our recent theme of Recycled Art, we're featuring glass artist Patti Lenckus. Her scrap glass mosaics are made from leftover glass otherwise headed for the landfill. Read how she got started in this Earth-friendly endeavor. Stained Glass Artist Patti Lenckus of Norman, Oklahoma has been saving her scraps for years. She has a five-shelf storage cart with bins, and she meticulously divides each piece of scrap by its color. Last year, she started using this glass to create mosaics. My first project was a picture of a flower vase created on an unfinished wooden tray that I found at a local craft store, Patti says. I had so much fun that I decided to teach a mosaic class at the local art center to share what I had learned. I taught my students to make pictures from scrap glass on a piece of floor tile. Patti also taught a class called Glass on Glass in which her students created flowers on glass trays. She even found a use for the tiniest pieces of leftover glass. I use them in the image discs on the end of my kaleidoscopes, she says. She finds a use for all of her scraps regardless of texture or color. Bright, opaque glass is good for using on thing

How did you get started in glass? A friend bought me a small fused glass wall hanging many years ago and Id often gazed at it and wondered how it was made. Then in 2005, after being diagnosed with M.E./C.F.S. and lung problems, I was unable to continue with my career in the Learning Disabilities profession and needed an alternative and more therapeutic endeavor that would accommodate my condition. So, following a moment of madness in early 2008, where I bid for a kiln on e-bay, I began to experiment in glass and quickly became hooked on the colour, beauty and diversity of kiln-formed work. Why glass? Ive always admired architecture and loved the way a glass window could completely transform a room. And kiln-formed fused glass is such an exciting medium. My favorite part is the mixture of anticipation and trepidation I feel when Im opening the kiln it reminds me of Christmas morning as a child . How have your other interests/hobbies/career influenced your glass designs? I enjoy gardening and am often influenced by the shape or colour of a flower. Im also in the process on renovating my home which was built in 1901 and love being able to make my own unique tiles,

How did you get started in glass? I was lonely! I moved to Richmond, VA from Minneapolis, MN about six years ago, and didnt know a soul. I had a friend back in MN who worked with stained glass and it sounded fun and challenging. When I saw that Richmonds local Visual Arts Center offered evening stained glass classes, I decided to try it. Turns out, I love working with glass! (And I met some other great creative people too!) Why glass? Prior to working with glass, I was (and still am) an admirer of all types of glass creations leaded, fused, blown, mosaics, etc. I never considered trying leaded glass myself until my friend told me about the process, and totally demy stified it. And then I thought, I think I need to do this! I really enjoy the puzzle fitting the pieces together to create something beautiful is extremely gratifying. How have your other interests/hobbies/career influenced your glass designs? I have been drawing in graphite and charcoal for several years and I also dabble in photography and graphic design. All of these skill sets come in handy when creating original glass works. I like dramatic contrasts and balanced designs, and this extends to my g

How did you get started in glass? I have always admired stained glass but never thought I would have the patience for it. It seemed like the process was daunting. I am the 'webmistress' for my Fremont Harley Owners Group Chapter and a lady in the Chapter created a glass panel to honor another member's wife who had passed. I mentioned to her that I'd always thought about doing stained glass but figured it was too hard. She offered to come teach me and change my mind. Last April, she did just that. It is labor intensive - but as a website developer I've developed the patience for intricate things. Why glass? I'm a very visual person, have always been artistic, and love vivid colors. Ever since I was little, I remember my mom washing out empty noxema bottles (cobalt blue) so I could hold them up to the light. I loved going to church just to look at the gorgeous stained glass windows. My favorite moment is holding panels up to the light for the first time. It's always an oooo ahhhh moment for me. How have your other interests/hobbies/career influenced your glass designs? Things I love show up in my glass panels, like my cats. I love red chili peppers a

How did you get started in fused glass art? It seems that fused glass is really just one step in a progression of mediums that started while I was dabbling in ceramics. I am not formally trained in fine arts (I was a fine arts major for my freshman year in college before the fear of failure set in and I switched to communications) so all my art training has been personally pursued. A number of years later, I must have happened across a warm glass site or a book and the deal was sealed. I did a Craigslist search the next week and immediately found someone in Bangor looking to sell her glass fusing studio for $400. Everything I needed to get startedkiln, glass, glov es, shelf paper etc. It was almost eerie how easily I happened across exactly what I was looking for - especially in Midcoast Maine (which is a very rural area). I will say that it has taken me into my 30s (and no formal art training) to finally find a medium that I feel so desperately passionately aboutthat I want to stay with it for a while - years, decadesmaybe a lifetime. How would you describe your design aesthetic? Industrial Organic. What does that mean? Beats meI guess I like to think that its a bl

How did you get started in glass?  I got started in glass by taking a glass class at Delphi in the winter of 2005.   I was hooked!   I just couldn't stop, I was making glass with a friend who had a ceramic kiln when HGTV offered to come film my work in glass.   I had nine weeks to prepare, and I went to Delphi and bought a coffin kiln and glass and went to work, making pieces that made sense for my garden.   Only after the segment aired, and galleries started calling offering representation did I consider glass as a career.   Now I have had 26 gallery shows, three museum showings and three large public garden exhibitions.   I just opened my own gallery. You mentioned in the biography on your website that you have done painting, interior design, set design and floral design. How have these activities influenced your work in glass? My background in painting, interior design, landscape design and floral have all come together in my glass work. Why glass sculpture?   I make sculpture because I need the scale and dimension to express myself.   I often work with other artists to make the metal work

Jane Nichols of Munfordville completed a 40 hour stained glass Flying Butterfly Mobile workshop and created a colorful, large stained glass flying butterfly mobile to hang in her home. Jane completed this project in less than 40 hours and she says, This was the most gratifying and fun thing I have done in a long time and Carl Correll is an excellent instructor. Though Jane had never cut a piece of glass before and had never been in any stained glass course she chose an Intermediate project and came through with flying colors. Speaking of colors, Jane says, Choosing the colors was the hardest thing I had to do! Avalon Stained Glass School Creativity Center says, Well done, Jane, and we are choosing you to be our Student of the month for October.