Sculpting with soft glass?

[honey*bee]

I have sat here and admired all these sculptures in here and I want to try so bad. The sculptures I have seen are made of boro (as far as I can tell), so I am wondering is it possible to sculpt with soft glass? Like large off mandrel stuff.

[RyanTheNumberImp]

I'm pretty sure Loren Stumps stuff is all soft.
http://www.stumpchuck.com/gallery.htm

[Kevan]

The italians have been sculpting in soft glass for hundreds of years.

Lucio Bubacco works in soft glass, doesn't he?

[ArtcoInc]

Absolutely! Look up the work of Lucio Bubacco:

www.luciobubacco.com

Malcolm

[honey*bee]

I have seen Bubacco's devils before and just loved them. I had no idea that it was soft glass!

Well with that being said, are there any good links or books on sculpting glass? Also I work on a minor, is that a large enough torch?

[prairieson]

Gianni Toso (http://www.giannitoso.com/) as well.

[Ekkie]

In Australia, Bernard Stonor creates wonderful soft glass sculptures. Perhaps he will post something here for us to see. Otherwise go to
http://glassbeadmakers.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=4211

Jenn

[truegem]

Start out small. Anything that is shaped is considered sculpting. Goddesses, a dog's head, a skull, flowers with 3-D petals, etc, etc, etc! It's a lot of fun, just gotta watch your heat or else those petals will melt back into a ball.

[barbaracollins]

Also Kim Fields (teaching at Bead & Button and the Gathering and in Indiana in October) and Marcy Lamberson (teaching at the Gathering).

[Elleth]

Check out this site, you may find something useful there:
http://smartflix.com/store/category/7/Glass

[honey*bee]

I can do flowers, hearts, hollow fish, skull and cross bones, etc. The only thing I do off mandrel is hearts and I would like to do more off mandrel sculptural stuff.
I will start small but I mainly just wanted to know if it was possible to do large stuff in 104 and if I have the equipment needed.
Thanks everyone for the links and info!

[prairieson]

Here are a couple of artists that work larger and in soft glass, most often neon tubing with 104 glass...

Fred Birkhill (http://www.frederickbirkhillstudios.com/gallery.php)

Shane Fero (http://www.shanefero.net/)

[Ro]

i sculpt with soft glass. either keeping the whole thing warm for pieces that are chunky without appendages. and for longer pieces with arms etc, i work from one end to the other, not going back to the pieces that have cooled. i used luccio's dvd for technique.
ro

[Elleth]

i sculpt with soft glass. either keeping the whole thing warm for pieces that are chunky without appendages. and for longer pieces with arms etc, i work from one end to the other, not going back to the pieces that have cooled. i used luccio's dvd for technique.
ro

So.... when you are working larger pieces with appendages after you are done with the appendage it doesn't go back in the flame? How do you keep it from cracking?


I am itching to create bigger but my glass keeps exploding on me when I do! :-k

I think I need to get Luccio's DVD.

[shawnette]

So.... when you are working larger pieces with appendages after you are done with the appendage it doesn't go back in the flame? How do you keep it from cracking?


I am itching to create bigger but my glass keeps exploding on me when I do! :-k

I think I need to get Luccio's DVD.

He's teaching in Indiana next month...

[truegem]

Oh, sorry Kristina, I didn't see where you wrote "large off-mandrel stuff". =)

[honey*bee]

patti, that is okay, I appreciate the advice!

I may have to look into this dvd. thanks.

[barbaracollins]

I have not seen a Luccio DVD. Where have you found it?

He is teaching at Inspired Fire, West Lafayette, IN, in the latter part of June 2009. www.inspiredfire.com

[Elleth]

i sculpt with soft glass. either keeping the whole thing warm for pieces that are chunky without appendages. and for longer pieces with arms etc, i work from one end to the other, not going back to the pieces that have cooled. i used luccio's dvd for technique.
ro
I have searched and searched for this DVD with no luck. Can someone please point me in the direction to find it?

[honey*bee]

I can't find it either.

[honey*bee]

Thanks Barb!! I will try my hardest to go to that! Will you be going?

[bshelle]

I'm going, Kristina, are you?!??

[ArtcoInc]

AFAIK, the place that made the Luccio videos is a community collage in Oregon. They don't seem to offer the DVDs, though. Occationaly, I do see them come up on eBay. In fact, there's a set up there now. They aren't cheap, though.

Malcolm

[barbaracollins]

Kristina, I am not going to Lucio's class at Inspired Fire, because it is just after Bead & Button, and then a welding class that I am taking at Boca. Jari is taking the short class during the week and Lisa is taking the weekend class.

[honey*bee]

I'm going, Kristina, are you?!??

I'm definitely going to try!

[honey*bee]

Kristina, I am not going to Lucio's class at Inspired Fire, because it is just after Bead & Button, and then a welding class that I am taking at Boca. Jari is taking the short class during the week and Lisa is taking the weekend class.

I don't think I could afford a class but I can afford gas to go watch free demos!!

[Ro]

So.... when you are working larger pieces with appendages after you are done with the appendage it doesn't go back in the flame? How do you keep it from cracking?


I am itching to create bigger but my glass keeps exploding on me when I do! :-k

I think I need to get Luccio's DVD.

dont put it back in the flame and it wont crack.

if you tell me what your trying to make i might be able to help more.

ill use figures as an example.

do butt and add legs keeping all warm. once you go back to butt to add torso, dont go back down the legs with the flame, let them cool. keep working up adding entire torso and shoulders and a neck. once your up high on the figure dont go back down to reheat. while keeping the chest up area warm add 1st arm sections and head. then you can go back to add 2nd arm sections, careful not to brush the flame on the body.

as long as heating and cooling is gradual and not abrupt there are no explosions.

the arm is usually rod dia or smaller, add heat to the tip slowly then add the second section, forearm, and hands or do hands later after annealed if they will be detailed.

i usually leave the 1st part of the arm a bit long to give me space to add heat and pull off what i dont want, if there is minor cracking i have some room to reheat. if the arms will come in contact with the body do them before adding the head while the main torso is warm.

i sometimes if adding a detailed head, make it first and have it sitting in a hot kiln to stick on when im ready for it, being careful of proportion to body. if you leave the neck long at first it gives you room to add gradual heat back to that area so no cracks when you add the head. for most soft glass sculptures you have to work pretty fast. so having an idea of how to quickly cut in details helps.

i practiced making pieces separately from the figure with clear or whatever. then when i go to build the piece i have a good idea of how it will work. if at any time you get the oh no feeling, your probably right. put it in a cool kiln and bring it up to anneal temp. let it soak, now its all happy again, then sometimes i bring it up to a bit higher temp in the kiln and pull it out to continue working, not reheating the whole thing in the flame just the area i need more work on. if what you have to add is going to a piece sticking out, you can anneal the main body, then just hold it cold and gradually add heat to the section to add the new part. hands or feet would be an example.

think of heating a rod in the flame, the whole thing doesnt explode, only a section behind the tip if you heated too quickly. if you added heat properly no cracks it just warms gradually. so anytime you have to add more glass somewhere if the section is pulled longer away from the body and to a point, it will be easier to add heat back into it. if a part is a large gather and you go to reheat it to add something it will explode.

i still get disasters when i push the oh no feeling and dont put it in the kiln, or if im going to slow. i always try to figure out ways to make pieces all at once rather than annealing in between. making appendages with detail, esp. heads with detailed faces a head of time and keeping them warm in a kiln while making the main piece has worked well for me.

ive seen lucio finish an annealed candle holder so big he could barely pick it up. he left a long section where the 'figure' was to be placed. the cold annealed stem was on the table as he made the figure. when he was ready he just gradually heated the extended section on the stem to ball it up then added the figure. then the whole thing went for another anneal.

vittorio does a lot of making the main parts and annealing them or letting them bench cool to hold and adding detail later.

for birds they get annealed with no feet. then he takes them out when cold and adds feet to the skinny already added leg section, he makes sure it can stand good then batch anneals them if making more than one, starting from a cold kiln. for bugs he makes the body with tiny first leg sections. puntied onto one of first bits of the back legs. when it cools, he can add all the rest of the leg sections and remove that punti by using a tiny, i mean tiny flame. he even uses a lighter to adjust the hang or position of a thin leg.

ive seen vittorio gets a hairline crack in something and he goes into the kiln after the piece has soaked at anneal temp with a tiny torch to heal the crack.

i found that using larger diameter rods to start is soooo much easier, coat a large clear or buy fat color. vittorio also takes a bunch of rods together and melts or shorts melted to get larger gathers. if it takes a long time to add glass to sections because your rod is thin, it makes it much harder.
good luck
ro

[Ro]

http://cgi.ebay.com/Lucio-Bubacco-Flameworking-Lampworking-DVD-Video_W0QQitemZ200345726347QQcmdZViewItemQQimsxZ20 090525?IMSfp=TL090525152006r33177

link to dvd. i got it at gas 04.

it is the chemeketa community college master flameworking series.
ro

[ArtcoInc]

I have searched and searched for this DVD with no luck. Can someone please point me in the direction to find it?

http://www.lampworketc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=131295

Malcolm

[Charli!]

Glass globes (think garden globes), like Marks in post 16 in http://www.lampworketc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=60344&highlight=glass+balls, soft glass or boro? Its something I'd love to do but it looks a lot of investment from just my old hothead!

[Ro]

http://cgi.ebay.com/Lucio-Bubacco-Flameworking-Lampworking-DVD-Video_W0QQitemZ200345726347QQcmdZViewItemQQimsxZ20 090525?IMSfp=TL090525152006r33177

link to dvd. i got it at gas 04.

it is the chemeketa community college master flameworking series.
ro

here it is again
ro

[Hayley]

Kristina - have you seen the Penland Book of Glass? It has quite a few step-by-step tutorials of amazing work, some in soda lime glass including Vittorio Costantini's fish and Shane Fero's bird!!!

http://www.amazon.com/Penland-Book-Glass-Flamework-Techniques/dp/1600591868/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1244653442&sr=8-1

I have the good fortune to have taken workshops with Gianni Toso and Vittorio . . . dang doing sculptural work off-mandrel is HARD!!!! I wish I had more time to torch so I could practice!

[houptdavid]

Glass globes (think garden globes), like Marks in post 16 in http://www.lampworketc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=60344&highlight=glass+balls, soft glass or boro? Its something I'd love to do but it looks a lot of investment from just my old hothead!
Mark's (laserglass) is soft glass cullet and if you search around you can find his posts on how he made most of his hot glass stuff.

[honey*bee]

Thanks Hayley, I haven't seen that book. I will have to get it!

[Ro]

contact:
[email]sales at artonic dot com
i just got the second set of 3 cds of luccios 'anatomy of the figure', really fast shipping, fantastic set!
ro

[chayes]

I ordered the vids from Artco. Great video's,better than Star Wars in my opinion.

[BugNerd]

I want to learn how to do this :-)

http://www.youtube.com/user/glasscritters

[BugNerd]

http://www.wesleyfleming.com/

[shawnette]

I want to learn how to do this :-)

http://www.youtube.com/user/glasscritters

http://www.wesleyfleming.com/

That's Gnimelf (his LE name). He teaches. You should sign up for one of his classes.