1. Blown glass is made in a hot shop. The glassblowing team is
lead by the gaffer, who is in charge of the piece being created.
|
|
2. Molten glass is made when sand and other ingredients are melting in a furnace at over 2000° F. The glassblower dips a blowpipe into the hot liquid glass to collect a gather, or blob of glass, on the end of the pipe.
|
|
3. The gather of glass is rolled on a steel table called a marver to smooth it into a rounded form.
|
|
4. The glassblower then blows air through the pipe to create a bubble of glass.
|
|
5. The gaffer uses blocks and other tools to shape the hot glass into the form he or she wants.
|
|
6. The gaffer has to constantly reheat the piece in a glory hole to keep it at the right temperature. |
|
7. Most glassblowers start with clear glass and then add color. When the glass is blown into a bubble and shaped, the colored glass becomes part of the whole piece. Another way to add color is to dip or roll the clear or colored glass into some frits of colored glass.
|
|
8. When a piece of blown glass artwork is finally ready, it is placed in an annealer, a special oven that cools the glass very slowly.
|
|
