This is a picture from the Maine Art Glass Studio in Lisbon. Took a class there today with 4 people from the cancer center; 4 of us are reiki practitioners. The teacher was wonderful. He instructed us to be guided by spirit as we created. We each made a small glass dish.
First we chose a sheet of glass. The first one I picked was blue with black swirls. That piece was too small. Next I chose a black piece, black with blue sparkles. Next I chose a form: a seashell. The dish will cook once, flat, then again in the form.
The teacher cut the sheet of glass into the proper size and shape. Then I sanded the edges and washed the glass with a mild acid solution.
Then the fun part. I decided to make a daikomyo symbol. I could use bits of glass, glass spaghetti, or glass powder. The spaghetti you can hold over a candle to soften, then mold it's shape. The powder you sprinkle and grate onto the sheet of glass. The bits of glass came in all shapes, mostly pointy shards. Then I found a box of tiny iridescent bits. That was it.
I took the tiny bits and made a mosaic of the daikomyo symbol. I used lots of silver, blue, and copper. There are also tiny slivers of pink and purple. I glued all the tiny pieces into place.
So it will go into the kiln for the first firing, over 1000 degrees. The second firing is slighter cooler; that's when it will take the shape of the scallop shell. The teacher said the dishes will be done next week.
After class we went out to dinner at Graziano's, a famous Italian restaurant in Lisbon.
