Sandy Chierici               

I have had the pleasure of working with fused glass for about ten years. In glass fusing, the majority of the design work takes place when the glass is cold. Then the pieces are melted, or fused, together in a kiln. The glass fusing processes I use require temperatures between 1250 degrees and 1650 degrees. Depending on the design requirements of each individual piece, there may be multiple firings or just one firing. In addition to the heating of the glass, we also cold work many of our pieces. This requires the use of glass saws, grinders, belt sanders and/or a lapidary grinder.

Fusing glass allows the artists to be creative with the techniques they use. Each individual component in a piece may have been fused or manipulated individually before it is used in the final piece. I sometimes use a torch to make design elements. Frequently, I will use aperture pours, which involve melting different glasses in items as diverse as clay flowerpots or kitchen vegetable strainers. As the glass streams out the bottom of these pieces the mingling of different colors can make beautiful designs. Metal in various forms can be added as design elements. Designs can be made out of powdered or granulated glass known as frit and can then be added to the final piece. Texture can be added to a piece both in the heating process or the cold working process. Discovering new processes and applications is one of the exciting things about working with fused glass.

Contact

Email: schierici@aol.com