Like most during the holiday season, my immediate family makes it a point to visit our extended family so we can experience the warm and fuzzies of this oh-so-special time of year together, but unfortunately our latest trek proved to be insufficient in the warm and fuzzy department. My poor mother (bless her faint, little heart) came down with a terrible flu that warranted quarantining her like a contagious Ebola victim. So, while we all made it a point to care for her with the utmost tenderness, with latex gloves, hospital masks, and hand sanitizer at the ready, we also made it a point to avoid her and her plague like it was the middle of the fourteenth century… So she could rest, of course.

However, in one instance of this infectious ordeal, the virus must have traveled to her pretty head and threw her into a state of delirium, where she declared she felt miraculously better and well enough to accompany us on our trip to the Chrysler Museum. In all seriousness, we were thrilled and relieved she was feeling so much better and could join us, especially considering we were on our way to witness a glass blowing demonstration.

I’ve only ever seen a glass blowing demonstration once or twice before, but had not remembered how complex it can be and how much fineness is required to create a significant show piece. Sound familiar? In fact, in watching the demonstration, I came to see that there are a lot of similarities between glassblowing and working with clay. For one, both require kilns to fire for long periods of time to a comparable range of temperatures. Attentiveness and awareness of the body’s motions are also crucial to appropriately manipulate the medium. Some of the colorants mixed with glass and glaze come from the same compounds, and raw glass without colorants can also be recycled and used again, much like raw clay.

It was also encouraging to see the bodies of work these individuals are building, and gain more exposure to fresh ideas, getting inspiration from a totally different area. If you read our Where Creativity Works blog regularly, you know we invite inspiration to come from all places, and certainly do not exclude other media around us in the search for a spark. I loved watching and listening to these passionate artisans doing what they love the most, succeeding in their field, learning and working hard, pushing the envelope, and earning a living. I tip my hat to these young people, and hope that one day, I’ll be on the other side of the demo on this kind of scale.

Thanks for the read!!