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Glass Blowing Sculpture
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Ryan Blythe's incredible
glasswork consists of elaborate compositions that combine traditional glassblowing
techniques with sculptural glass elements. He creates elegant vessels, bowls and
sculptures. But among his most impressive works are his large-scale sculptural installations.
His intriguing style is a hybrid of techniques he learned from his masters in
Italy
and the
Pacific Northwest
, which have spawned Blythe's wild and alluring glass formations.
His "larger than life" glass installations begin with a full-scale prototype as
it will appear in the finished design. When the prototype has reached its desired
outcome, it's time to recreate it. The installation consists of several individual
pieces that are both blown and sculpted. With the assistance of his team, Blythe
first gathers molten glass on the end of the puny rod. It is blown, heated in a
1000-pound furnace, blown some more, reheated, blown again, and hand-shaped with
wet newspaper and glass sculpting tools until it has reached its finished state.
He breaks the piece off of the rod and grinds and polishes it in his cold shop. |
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The cold shop contains diamond wheels that spin under running water, which cools
the glass and removes any debris. The pieces are also annealed in an annealing oven.
More glass elements are created exactly the same way. This process continues until
every piece of his installation is finished and ready to be assembled. A bit of
metal work is involved to fabricate pieces to support the hanging works. Finally,
Blythe makes a complete mock up in studio and hangs it. When the sculpture is to
be moved, it must be dismantled and put together on site. Blythe's stunning glass
sculptures are an awe-inspiring example of rhythm and poetry in glass.
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