Mon/Tues

Goodmorning!
This has been a great week so far and its only wednesday morning. First thing tuesday we started off with a mold blowing demo. Nothing like working in the hot shop trying to make glasses and bowls, but so versitile. Monday is our last day to work in hot glass so now we are cooking to get everything done. We do get a treat while we are here and are going to cast into what is called the car kiln. This is going to give us the ability to make thicker pieces because of the amount of time they need to aneal. Also during this time period we had a demo with brynhildir. She is one of my teachers and a well known icelandic artist, who uses a large amount of concrete in her work. So that was what our demo was on, a good way to use concrete in your work without it being a total pain. I figure its about time to talk about the work I'm making here. It is truly hard to not be inspired in such a beautiful setting, and as a disclaimer I have to say not to let your imaginations go wild because my glass working skills are still limited, and my not been as great as the pictures you can draw in your head. So far I have two molds ready to go into the car kiln. One is of a tree stump with the shadow of a woman in it. This was a piece carved out of clay and made into a one piece mold. The second piece I have ready do go is casting of the knot from a tree I recovered during one of my hikes. I just loved the shape and how it had a spike anchoring it to a tree. Its not every day we think about branches being spiked into a tree. but I am casting it into a rather solid piece of glass tall and thin to stand and excentuate the shape of the branch further. For my site specific installation... This is a secret just in case my teachers get a hold of this blog. You will just have to wait in suspense. I am also working on a colaboration with one of my class mates josh. We found a small creek on campus and are working twards sand casting some branches we find, well alot of branches we find and creating a small glass damn. Today I'm heading back into the mold making studio to battle plaster some more, hopefully with less mishapes than yesterday. If you have any questions about the processes im using please let me know, feel free to e-mail and ask questions and I will answer them the best way I know how.