GEEX Flame Affinity Group
The Changing Landscape of Flameworking
Dec 16, 2021 7pm EST
Facilitated by Amy Lemaire and Madeline Rile Smith
Notes compiled by Amy Lemaire and Madeline Rile Smith.
Entries in quotes are copied directly from the chat.
Each bullet point represents a comment by a participant.
Italic headings indicate off-topic conversation threads.
- “Within the glass community, I identify as a flameworker with specialties in beads and sculpture/fabrication. In the greater arts community, I identify as an artist and represent glassworking in general.”
- Overlapping identities of performance art, interactive artwork, wearables/jewelry, teacher, ambassador/advocate for flameworking.
- I self-identify as a flameworker with other flameworkers, but hesitate in outward facing situations to avoid being pigeonholed.
- I use the term “glassmaker” instead of “pipemaker.” Hesitate to identify as a pipe maker. In the general art world, “flameworker” or “pipemaker” language is not fully understood by the general public.
- Never identified as a flameworker or beadmaker – “I work in glass” or glassworker. Did not feel comfortable identifying as a beadmaker because of hierarchy when first started. “Pipemaker” can be considered taboo.
- Try not to identify myself, or even say “glass”. Categories can get in the way of things.
- Self-identity as Glass Specialist in tech industry, title/specialty matters for negotiating salary. Downplay your specialty as an artist.
- I identify as an Artist and Designer first, fluctuates depending on project, neon is a micro-niche that is a process driven aspect of flameworking
- Self-labeled “Glass artist” on instagram, but identify as a flameworker. Can be an unfair stigma against flameworkers from other people in the glass community, who want to avoid “tiny glassblowing” implications.
- In the jewelry community, I self-identify as a beadmaker, because it links to the traditions of beadmaking, and honors those who came before.
- I make a point to identify as a pipemaker. Struggle in the pipeworld to be perceived as female and be identified as a pipemaker at all.
- There is a lot of exciting potential for flameworking in education, re: realities of energy use and climate change, flameworking lends itself beautifully to that.
- A bit of a disconnect in academia – still a bit of a stigma re: pipemaking, although that is breaking down.
- Regarding not fitting in – in the scientific community, [I feel] too artistic and in the art community [I feel] too technical. But that does not matter to me.
- There are deep specialties for some of us, lack of being categorized for some of us, for some, overlapping categories.
- “I’m not a flameworker, I’m an artist who takes advantage of flameworking.” Helps the viewer keep an open mind for what the work needs to be.
- “I think I will be happy to be called as a flameworker and an educator who is exploring the boundary of the field. I often fuse 3D rendering & flameworking, screen printing & flameworking, etc. However I am in huge love with the technique, I would say I am a flameworker rather than a sculptor.”
- “Representation matters!”
- “As someone who lives in the middle of nowhere, who is completely removed from the glass culture, all of this info of this faction-ing is so interesting.”
- Specialization in fabrication is helpful for client confidence.
- Soft glass is ancient, but borosilicate and quartz are new glasses. Listing material as “Borosilicate” instead of glass in artwork can be indicative of a contemporary material and process. Being specific about materials might be a good thing.
- Listing borosilicate as a material helps give information about the process.
- In the 70s it was all glassblowing. The term lampworking didn’t come in until the 70s/80s.
- When you read old materials, you’ll see glassblowing — not lampworking or flameworking.
- Is it time to update some of the terminology we use?
- Sometimes being really specific regarding identity markers can form cliques or ingroups and that may be something to avoid. Reluctant to pick specifics as identity markers because it can hinder inclusion.
- Getting comfortable with flameworking has opened up opportunities in the hotshop. Flameworking is a tool, and does not need to be defined as one specific thing.
- What are some of the earlier terms for this mode of working? Could that language be used today?
- When did pipes become taboo? All of a sudden it was shunned. Pipes have always been part of the American lifestyle. I shouldn’t be a separate thing.
- Maybe from DARE and the war on drugs in the 80s? Before that?
- American Pipe history – in the 70s or maybe late 60s and when people first started selling pipes in record stores and head shops, the trade shows where this stuff was sold was closely connected to the porn industry. Wholesale events would be together, so pipes became associated with porn, so maybe that’s how “Pipes are bad” attitudes started.
- American Glass Expo (pipe trade show) used to always be scheduled after the porn convention in Las Vegas. (in contemporary times)
- In 1970, Sally’s teacher Lloyd was selling fumed pipes at craft shows. Police said he couldn’t sell hookahs but he continued selling pipes.
- One aspect of contemporary lampworking is that there is a lot of collaboration happening, maybe now more than ever. Portability, enabling traveling with equipment
- Contemporary Flameworking could be an inclusive term used to describe anyone working with glass in this way, any of the subgroups, and including artists/designers who do not identify as flameworkers but use flameworking as a technique in their work.
- Anything made with a torch should be considered flameworking, even in the hotshop.
- Contemporary flameworking is more concept driven.
- Flameworking vs. lampworking? Use them interchangeably? Flamer, torchworker.
- I use the term Lampworking when talking about history because that was the term used.
- Titles – just get rid of them all.
- West coast people say flameworking, east coast people say lampworking.
- Scale of heat- is that a defining criteria for “flameworking” vs. melting glass stringers with heat from a candle, for example?
- “I think the contemporary flameworking is more concept-driven.”
- “I think if you use a torch to manipulate glass in any part of creating a work, that work is tied to contemporary flameworking.”
- “Flameworking” is a really new term. I tend to use “lampworking” for historical torchwork”
- “I like lampworking bc it’s older, but got tired of “oh, so you make lamps?”
- “I usually call it flameworking or torch work and use lampworking as a reference towards the historical roots or the process”
- “Pipe is for transport/moving material or media… it’s historical”
- Flameworked glass is a lot more colorful these days because of expansion in the borosilicate color palette. (In the 80s, with a limited palette available, artists mixed their own colors.)
- “We had blue and uranium green, and everything else we mixed ourselves.” You can fume with red iron oxide. It’s amazing the color that is out there now. Learning curve with the new colors. Sue Ellen Fowler and Paul Trautman were pioneers in making borosilicate color.
- Because of its immediacy, there is a playfulness to flameworking that is not experienced in other glassworking practices. (Re: mixing colors, trying different glasses, understanding and observing properties of materials in real time.)
- Past volumes of New Glass Review & “academic glass” – often clear. (Not much color)
- Data points of what glasswork is most likely to get into the New Glass Review (Zac Weinberg’s project) Flameworking, and art made with found glass was among the least likely to get in.
- Depending on jurors — in a recent year of New Glass Review, there was lots of flameworking and pipes represented. Micah Evans was the juror.
- Advancement could be increased visibility for flameworking. Showing the different aspects and variety of ways of working to break down stereotypes.
- More representation of flameworking at conferences & in the world and in the art world.
- More exploration of borosilicate as a plastic material by sculptors inside and outside the glass world. With borosilicate it’s possible to revise, rework, edit and repair.
- Exploring borosilicate in a mixed media context.
- Advancement could be defined as an expansion of technical and/or expressive applications for borosilicate glass.
- Scientific glassblowing is responsible for so many advancements, not just in flameworking but in science and technology and affects us all. (fiber optics, screens, etc.) Opens up more possibilities for art.
- A foundation in flameworking can be a great starting point for problem solving, where other methods for glassworking might not be applicable, and especially for thinking through micro-scaled work, or laser welding glass.
- Advancement could be considered as inclusive expansion of flameworking into the developing world. Potential for flameworking to be more accessible to people who would not otherwise have access to glassworking. Hotshop is so expensive, although there is a point of entry through scientific glassworking that could be expanded.
- More interdisciplinary work incorporating flameworking with other components.
- More flameworking represented in Biennials and international shows.
- Flameworking being represented as art without needing to call it out as flameworking.
- More representation for flameworking so that eventually it might become so familiar that we don’t need labels.
- The state of the popularity of pipemaking and flameworking is a common force driving students to institutions, however, then once they get to institutions they are often shut down. Thinking of flameworking as technical can be a way around this, and can be applicable for the interest of the next generation and a way to talk about pipes. Technique and design can be common ground to bring everyone together in institutions. Would be great if pipemaking were more open in institutions (not necessarily being able to make pipe objects, but to have a dialog about technique and design.) Use pipes to engage the creativity of students and challenge design conventions.
- Pipes are an entry point into glass. Take away the stigma of pipemaking.
- TikTok as a point of entry – link to classes, resource exchange for more info.
- Often we have to follow the market, but it would be great if the jewelry market were as lucrative as the pipe market.
- Increased dialogue between flameworkers. (Something we are doing with Flame Affinity Group)
- “I would love to see fluidity in flameworking with multimedia, non exclusionary, open, limitless in expression.”
- “I think a large area that isn’t explored enough is interdisciplinary work. Incorporating flameworked glass components, or flameworking techniques into work, and even combining it with other disciplines and media has a lot of potential that hasn’t really been mapped out yet.”
- “I see a lot of quartz being used.”
- Create or use a platform to cross-pollinate and collaborate on new ways of working.
- Deep dive discussion on increasing diversity in all areas.
- Collaboration – what sorts of platforms do you use?
- Accessibility and diversity
- Pipemaking – import some of the stories, voices, history into the community
- How does teaching happen in the community? Competition pipemaking? Learn about some of the innovative structures that pipemakers have come up with as solutions to not having access to institutions.
- “I’d be interested to hear from flameworkers who do fabrication work! Maybe this could be tied into Paul’s idea of collaboration, and provide useful pointers/career development for people who haven’t done it before.”
- “I would love to hear from other artists who have not had access to traditional or non traditional education who have had to learn in isolation, and how to mingle with their peers who exist in different artistic spaces.”
- “I count that (pipe field) among the diversity that I was talking about. Diversity in terms of experience, background and perspective fit into that.”
Last updated: 2/8/22
