Hands

I have been drawing all or portions of hands lately whenever I am sitting, waiting for an appointment.  I started looking through paintings and seeing different hands that I have painted and below are a couple of details .  I enjoy drawing and painting hands because they are expressive and complex.  

Repair or Create New Panel?

I was presented with 2 stained glass panels that had multiple broken glass sections and the came was bowing and coming apart.  I discussed with the client what it would cost to repair the panels vs what the cost was to start over and use a couple of pieces of glass that were not broken.  The new panels will be stable and will not bow as the old ones have and they can have piece of mind that they will not fall apart on them.  

The bottom two images show the process of creating new panels. I am also using a restoration clear glass which has a slight wave in the glass which will match the original glass that is throughout this turn of the century house.

My Artist Mission

I have been going through a course called Making-art-making-money by Ann Rea which covers how to have a successful art business.  Years ago I realized that the standard business model/business plan really does not work for artists.  I had been working so hard and for quite a few years with some success but not enough to allow me to do it full time.  I showed different business people what I was doing and they kept saying that I was doing everything right and they did not understand why I was unable to do it full time. 

One main problem I have been discovering is that the standard business model pertains to selling a product.  Artists are selling emotion rather than a product and figuring out how to do that has been difficult.  Another issue for me has been the question of what am I selling? Is it the art itself, the style, am I a figurative painter, landscape artist, stained glass artist, etc?  Intuitively I have felt like what I am creating is more than the product, I would see what emotional impact it has had for clients and technically what I have been doing that is different than anything else out there, but I was having a hard time describing what it was and tying the emotional and technical aspects together.  

In going through this course I have been able to figure out what my purpose and mission as an artist is and can begin the process of narrowing down who my audience is. My mission is to Nourish Your Soul Through a Symphony of Light and Colour! 
Getting to this point has been a journey of self discovery, looking at many different emotional impacts throughout my life and seeing a distinct pattern since childhood.  The result is seeing how my purpose is accepting who I am, nourishing who I am/my soul and realizing how other people are seeking or doing things to nourish their soul or who they are.  I am using my skills as a glass artist and painter to help others attain this.  

I played the Viola from 6th grade through college and loved the sound of the instrument and enjoyed being a part of an orchestra.  Looking back, it was a good experience but the performing and playing the instrument was not the part that really nourished me.  Listening to symphonic music, hearing the many layers, instruments, sounds, melodies, communicating with each other and coming together, is what really nourished my soul.  I find that this comes out in my artwork and I feel such a deep connection.  I am working with many different elements, each one playing a different part in creating something that ultimately nourishes the soul.
  

Installation Day!

The installation process for the project I have been working on was quite intensive and went pretty smooth with a few minor issues that we solved quickly.  There was  general contractor Slavik of Grada Inc. to help in addition to the Roger from Adventure Metal who created the metal frames.  I enjoyed working with them in the process of this project.
Here are some pictures of the installation.
One detail to look for is the difference in the glass color when the clouds are behind the panels vs when there is blue sky and direct sun.  It is very different.  We had a lot of fun observing the way the glass changes as the day progressed and what was in the background changed.
The large window in the top center is 8 ft tall by 6 ft wide to give you an idea of the scale.  
The design was created by OSMOSE an interior design firm in Portland, OR, and I created some modifications suitable for glasswork and did the fabrication.

Framing Large Glass Panels

In the current project that I have been sharing pictures the next step is putting the glass panels into the metal frames that have been recently painted.  It has been a little complicated than I thought it would be and took almost twice as long to complete. The results are beautiful.  I love the framework.  The paint color is to match the existing window frame color.

Installation is right around the corner!

Getting Good at Cutting Glass

Cutting glass freehand takes quite a bit of practice, especially the inside curves as in the one pictured.  Sometimes the glass breaks where you do not want it to.

Large Residential Stained Glass Project

I have been working on a large project for 3 large windows in a living room area of a home in Portland, OR.
Designs for the large window in the center of these 3 windows is broken down into 3 sections and all 5 stained glass panels will be put into metal frames before being installed into the living room windows.
The first image shows the metal frames on the floor of my garage, the second is of me drawing out the designs, and the following ones are of the progression of a panel.
The longest panel is 86 inches tall by 24 inches wide.

Bevels for a Front Door Repair

I had received a call from someone who has a beveled cluster design in a front door and a couple of the bevels have cracks in them. The type of glass that was used for these bevels is 1/4 inch thick glue chip glass.  These bevel clusters are not made anymore so I had to order this type of glass and create the bevels.  I also had to modify one of the shapes by splitting it into 2 shapes so I could create the inside curve.  

Here area a few pictures showing the cracks and some of the bevel process.

Trip to Japan!

Last month my family and I traveled to Japan to visit my wife's family and did a lot of sightseeing and eating.  I always enjoy visiting where my wife grew up and experiencing the culture.  I love the way the old architecture really fits in with the surroundings and the colors and textures they use in their buildings and other things such as clothing.  Their attention to detail is exquisite. 
One of many things that I enjoy taking pictures of is the sewer hole covers.  They are very ornate and can be colorful depending on the area. Here are a few examples.

Opening Up My Art to Portland, OR!

On June 15 and 16 I will be showing and selling my artwork at the 2019 Portland Pride Waterfront Festival.

Show times are Sat 12-8pm and Sun 11:30am to 6 pm

I will be in booth M-02

"Flowing Blue" Completed

Previous post I showed images of colored pieces being beveled.  One of them was for this small panel I was working on.  Beveling the edges of the color really adds dimension and changes the look, as well as changing the way the light flows through.

Effects of Beveling Colored Glass

I am currently working on a glass panel where I am beveling clear glass and then beveling a color piece the shape of the center of the clear bevel and bonding them together.  Beveling color pieces produces some fun results that I want to share with you. 
When beveling colored glass, certain layers of the color is removed which changes the look of the color, lightening it and it also plays with the light more and adds more depth to the piece.  Depending on the type of glass there may be different colors dispersed through the glass or a different color on one layer of the glass sheet.  When beveling this type of glass I find the different colors are revealed or removed on certain layers which gives a very interesting look.  Some color depending on where in the layers it is at will appear in different parts of the bevel.
I am using a blown glass that is a shade of blue with a layer of white opal. When I beveled it the white layer is removed in the bevel revealing the blue underneath the white.

I have enjoyed this process throughout the many years of doing this and it always is a joy to see different results from different types of glass.  In all of the following examples, observe how color in the beveled edged changes, in some cases it becomes lighter, in others different colors that are in different layers of the glass are revealed.

This produces much more interest, light play and depth do the glass.

Response from Client

I received an email from the client whose entryway I had created glasswork for and posted  

previously.  I am very grateful that they are pleased with the outcome  and for the opportunity

to have created it. 

Here is what was said:

"Isaac's work was impeccable. He crafted some glass work for our front door and side
lights that complimented our home beautifully. He completed the work on time and on
budget. Isaac is a true craftsman and professional."

Restoring Historic Home Entryway

I posted a couple of times showing restoration work in progress on a home built in the early 1900s.  Previous owners had removed the original designed glass panels and put in plain glass in the front door and thermopane windows in the sidelights with the exterior pane of glass being a clear textured glass.  Here is what the entryway looked like before installing the new panels.

In different areas of the home the original glass windows still remain and I wanted to keep the feeling of the original work into the entryway and also adding my own touch to the piece.

Here is the entryway after removing the existing glass and adding in the new panels:

So much better than what was there! It now looks the way the it was intended to be.  I added hand beveled glass and created them in a way that adds more depth, dimension and light play by changing the width of the bevel around the shape.

In looking at the bottom bevels the lower section is narrow and gets wider at the top.  The bevels in the center of the panels are the same width as the widest part on the bottom bevels and the top row of bevels are the reverse from the bottom bevels.  I am very pleased with how these turned out and the clients are ecstatic!