Artists are the most generous people I know. We love to
share our passion. We all want to make a more dramatic and memorable impression
with our art. One of the bests way to accomplish this is to go bigger and make
large scale pieces that stand out in the crowd.
But going bigger can be scary. You must invest more time
and material. And there are more design decisions to make. It’s a huge
commitment and you want guarantees that the finished piece will exceed your
expectations. Following are some fundamental tips that’ll greatly increase your
success with all your fused glass artwork.
1 Measuring the Slumping Mold
It seems trivial, but this is where most craftsman go
wrong. Everyone wants to make the largest fused glass disc possible. They then
measure the mold from the outer rim to the outer rim and cut their glass
circles accordingly. They wrongly assume the glass that rests on
the top rim of the mold will follow the center of the fused glass disc as it slumps
into the mold. The problem is the glass on the flat rim drags.
Therefore, it does not fall into the mold evenly. The
result is a bowl with uneven height in the side walls. A lopsided bowl can be
avoided simply by measuring across the inside
of the mold and then cutting the glass ¼ to ½ inch smaller than that
measurement. Yes, the bowl is slightly smaller. No one will notice. They’ll be
too busy admiring your beautifully crafted, uniform bowl with even side walls all
the way around.
2 Durability is in the Design
When going larger it’s important to design your art in such
a way that the glass thickness is uniform throughout the entire piece of art.
If you design the round disc with two glass layers on one side and four glass
layers on the opposite side, you’ll have unbalanced mass. This can cause the finished
piece of art to break due to the stress of supporting its own weight. Instead,
plan your design execution in advance to ensure you have the same number of
glass layers across the entire disc. Small accents pieces decorating the top aren’t
a concern, provided they’re added in moderation.
3 Let it Shine
The beauty of glass is its transparency, and the attraction
of glass fusing is our ability to mix transparent and opal materials, to create
various color combinations and an infinite number of intricate patterns. The
wonderful thing about going large is the extended size of the creative canvas.
With more room, you have more opportunity to expand your design ideas and make
a dynamic statement. So rather than fumble through, take time to plan a well
thought out design. Consider including pre-tacked or fused glass components for
added interest. Mix both transparent and opal glass to increase visible depth.
The possibilities are endless.
4 Do Your Best Work
Don’t cut corners. No excuses. If you think to ask, “Should
I recut or redo this?” My answer is, “Yes.” The more time and effort you put
into each step will greatly improve the overall quality of your finished pieces.
Fabrication and execution are equally as important as design esthetics. If you
implement this approach, every piece you produce will be a masterpiece.
5 Fusing and Slumping
Slow it down. Larger usually also means thicker. You’ll
dramatically increase your firing success rate by slowing down both the fusing
schedule and the slumping schedule. I fire my large pieces at 300 degrees per
hour and hold several times on the way up to 1465 degrees to fuse, and 1220
degrees to slump. I anneal the glass at 960 degrees for 180 minutes, for both
fusing and slumping, and then slowly drop the temperature down to room
temperature. By being conservative with the firing schedules, I achieve
consistently beautiful results every time. You can too!
Excerpt from Make a
Fused Glass Sink Webinar
For
more in-depth information on making sinks and large vessels, join me for my
next webinar. All the pro tips and tricks will be revealed.
Let’s
get together and make sinks in my Make a
Fused Glass Sink webinar August
8, 2017.
I hope to see you there,
Check out my NEW Video!
Make Fused Glass Sinks
Happy fusing!
Lisa
Lisa
For more tips and tricks visit:
Upcoming Webinars & Workshop
Make
a Fused Glass Sink Webinar
August 8, 2017
NEW Fusing
for the Adventurous Webinar
September 5, 20147
NEW Fusing
for the Adventurous Webinar
September 7, 2017
Fusing
with Frit Webinar
October 26, 2017
Advanced Glass Fusing Workshop
November
14-17, 2017
4-Days,
Hands-on, Wesley Chapel, FL
You’ll love the incredible creative
momentum you gain from the in-depth concentration of working uninterrupted for
four full days!
Here’s what
students are saying about the workshop.
Your knowledge, easy teaching style and down to earth
approach are just wonderful and I can learn so much more about glass by working
with you. -Barbara
I
have been inspired by you to work more in my studio!
-Dana
Creative
Slumping Webinar
January 18, 2018
https://www.glasspatterns.com/glass-patterns-quarterly-store/category/172-glass-expert-webinars-no-traveling-required.html?page=2
Advanced
Glass Fusing Workshop
February 6 – 9, 2018
4-Days, Hands-on, Wesley Chapel, FL
Register here http://www.lisavogt.net/products.aspx?id=477
5
Reasons Why YOU Will LOVE this Workshop!
1
One-on-one instruction
2
Step-by-step guidance to develop your own design style
3
Individualized project program - make what inspires YOU
4 Four
full days of hands-on creating and fusing
5
Unlimited possibilities
