My Art - Frank

Red Pendant

This is still my favourite piece. It's made from Striker Red Glass, Clear Dichroic, Copper Wire, Black Glass and Clear Glass. Striker Glass changes colour in the kiln and it a little unpredictable in that a small change in conditions can cause a big change in colour.

Flower Detail before firing

Here we have a close-up of a small part of a plaque. The little bits of glass are called frit and they have been placed loose onto the base glass. The little bits of copper wire are more of a problem and these have been glues in place with small spots of glue.

Three Ready to Fire

This picture shows three plaques lying on the bench ready to be fired. The two outer ones you will see again in the next frame. The middle one is gone never to be seen again, it did not work.

So on the left an imaginary flower and on the right two sailing boats and a setting sun.

Plaques

The plaques post firing and here I will point out some of the features of kiln fired glass.

The course frit has become little round dots of colour and the fin has become almost like air brushed colour. In fact if you look closely at it, it is also little round dots. In some places bubbles of air are trapped in the glass, on the left around the copper wire which has oxidised and gone a dark purple. On the right the one bubble is trapped top left of the plaque and this will be where the glass has been held up by a small bump or something trapped between the sheets. Some people love bubbles others hate them, I love them but in the right place.

In the Kiln

Here we have some small pieces of work in a kiln. These are pieces from novices, including me, who had at most made a few bits before and were still learning. The kiln is just about as small as you can get and can be carried by one person as long as they are careful.

To give you an idea of the size of the kiln is about eight inches across the floor and the pieces in there are all pendants with copper wire loops to hang them from.

Duo of Pendants

Here we have a pair of Dichroic Glass pendants. The colours in Dichroic Glass result from the interference between the light and the material structure and as a result the colours are very pure and bright, metallic in nature.

Mirror

To the best of my knowledge you cannot fuse mirrors. So this would be impossible without a little cheating. The frame is fused and the mirror is then bonded to the back.

This frame is mostly clear glass and relies on the texture that comes from the kiln shelf and the few flashes of blue.