Sunday, April 25, 2010

Beautiful Lampwork

Headed over to d'Art Center, which had moved and with the light rail constuction was a nightmare to find. Anyhoo, on this trip I met a lampwork artist by the name of Cathy Jo Ramsey. Truly one of the loveliest people I have ever met. Her space at d'Art is filled with her beautiful glasswork, thousands of glass rods stored in and on antique furniture pieces and her work station. She worked as a PE teacher for 30 years. Retired now, she is following her artist heart to working with glass. She began as a glass blower and has now moved into lampwork. I have to say she was so much fun to watch and speak with. She demonstrated how she makes her signature piece, a glass oyster on the half shell. Take a look at her work here http://www.glass-imaginings.com/index.html . The way she blends the glass color and curls the edges was truly fascinating. She was very encouraging when I spoke with her about trying lampwork myself. I had to say though I would probably end up with a blob of ugly glass! I guess as with any art it takes a lot of practice to become good at what you do. I told her she would be a great vendor at Art and Soul. I'm sure her items would sell like hotcakes. If you are ever at d'Art Center make sure you stop by to see this wonderful lady and stay awhile to watch and chat.

Not much else was open in the d'Art center on a Sunday afternoon but with all glass fronts you could see the work of other artists. Normally they are there working and sell their art. Apparently, during the week they have lunch events with music. It is definitely a place to visit again, perhaps on a Saturday when more artists are around. Check out their website http://www.d-artcenter.org/splash.html. If you park at MacAuthor mall it's just a two block walk. Directions, hours and parking suggestions are listed on the website.

As usual another art adventure leads to lovely things and lovely people!

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