Practicing Basic Fundamentals of Shape and Form

Bottle

This week I am focusing on practicing the basic fundamentals of glassblowing. I have been blowing marbles, bubbles, and cups. Emphasizing learning and practicing the fundamentals of glass is essential in knowing how to develop any artwork. Understanding how the glass reacts to heat, pressure and control is extremely important. I have learnt through ceramics that repetition will allow you to perfect certain skill sets and achieve the work you envision. Shaping marbles, blowing spheres, and practicing punty’s has helped me in understanding the fundamentals of glassblowing and will improve my work as I start to go on to making functional pieces. I have learned how to gather sufficiently and maximize my time while being in the hot shop. Timing, temperature and control are all extremely important factors of glassblowing. Knowing how to efficiently maximize your time working with the glass will allow you to be able to achieve the shape and form you intend. I am learning how to work the glass with the right amount of heat which helps me shape it properly and resourcefully. I have been practicing punty’s, which is when you gather a small amount of glass from the furnace and shape it on the marver, in preparation for attaching it to the end of the glass piece. You have to be aware of how the temperature affects what you do. If, for example, you are making a small, delicate and thin cup you will need to make the punty with a very small gather of glass on a small rod. I have repeatedly practiced puntys and blown spheres this week and have improved each time. This allows me to understand what to do in order to make a cup or bowl. All of these steps will allow me to go forward in making more complex pieces. While practicing the fundamentals of glassblowing, as well as understanding how the glass reacts under different circumstances, I have found a lot of similarities between glass and clay. Both glassblowing and throwing on the wheel are extremely alike in that they both require keeping the piece on center, keeping an even wall thickness, understanding how to shape the piece and how to control timing. I believe my background in pottery has helped me understand more about how I should work with the glass. This week has been a lot of repetition and practice but it will help me improve quicker and more efficiently for the future.