Founded in August 2011, White Torch Glassworks is an idea I've been bouncing around for a couple of years now. I first noticed the beauty of colored glass when I was in early elementary school in Minneapolis. There, I had the pleasure of driving by (well, I guess my parents did the driving) the Basilica of Saint Mary. It has a beautiful rose window and smaller glass features. Since then, I've kept my eye out for all things glass.
A few years ago, I had the privilege of taking a stained glass class from the amazing Andy Kosorok. That man is ridiculous. He taught me enough to get me started and then some. I've taken that bit of knowledge and done my best to expound on it, making it my own.
Since then, I've explored even more, taking the natural bridge from cold to hot glass manipulation. I now also make lampwork beads. In other words, I get to play with fire! Using a bench torch in my unfinished basement, I spend hours hunched over my work. I can no sooner make a bead with one technique than have a dozen ideas for more.
This all boils down to one point: I've fallen in love with this fickle medium. And just like love, it has its good and bad. While I rejoice to design, cut, and solder, my fingers are full of cuts and burn marks. I generally have at least one Band-aid on my hands at any given time. But none of this matters when I view light refracting through colored glass and am entranced over and over again.
