Peter Patterson

I have been working with hot glass for over 20 years and am still amazed at the mysteries that glass has to offer.  Always being constantly challenged on different glass processes and techniques is reflected in the many glass styles I create.

Much inspiration comes from nature and underwater experiences in scuba diving.  The fluidness of glass is constantly in motion and lends a certain amount of unpredictability, which is always challenging.  One of the greatest pleasures in creating beautiful glass is seeing the joy on my customers’ faces.

My extensive use of techniques in hot glass comes from my studies in college as an illustrator.  I like to think of each piece as an illustration in itself.  One way of controlling my images is to pre-fuse the decoration and choose that image on the piece.

Glass is an amazingly versatile material with a long and varied history of use for utilitarian and decorative purposes.

By the early 1900s, glassblowing took place only in factories and mostly for commercial and industrial use.  Designers gave their ideas to anonymous workmen to produce.  At mid-century, artists such as ceramist Harvey Littleton began experimenting with small studio-sized furnaces, teaching themselves how to melt and blow glass.  Their successes brought glassblowing back into the hands of designers and marked the birth of the Studio Glass Movement.

As those pioneers moved increasingly beyond the sphere of craft they also shifted from producing purely functional wares towards artistic and sculptural pieces.  Today, artists trained in all media, including sculpture and painting, are exploring the qualities of glass in new expressive ways.  Their works clearly reflect the influence of current artistic trends.

Glass can be used in numerous ways and to varied effects, which are not possible with other materials.  Prized for its translucency and brilliance, it also can be opaque or dull.  The presence or absence of color plays an important role. Used alone or in combination with other media, glass has taken its place in the history of art as an exciting, and sometimes surprising, material.