Form With Blue Glass in Middle
2 'x 1' x 1'
Sand cast glass slumped with clay.
How it was made:
The clay parts were made first. I made 4 parts. The thin clay disks on either side of the glass I made separetly. I used them to help me deside how big the glass part needed to be and also used them for the glass to rest on and form after in the second fireing of the glass part. I put heavy bricks on top of the top disk to force the glass more into the shape of the clay disks. I then took the bricks out when the glass had slumped to my likeing. I took out the bricks so I would not be getting a uneven heat in the kiln that might break the glass as it cooled down beside they are a unnessasery heat sink.
The glass part is a blue sand cast donut. The blue came from cobalt carbonat (oxide) that I stirred into the molten glass when it was still in the ladle getting ready to be poured in to a handbuilt sand mold.When I took out the glass I didn't like how much sand was sticking to the glass so I polished some parts of it away as you can see. I only polished up to grid 400 for I was going to heat the glass again and the heat would airpolish the glass for me.
To hold everything together there is a PVC tube that goes through the whole piece and lots of good thick two part glue called PC 40.
Ring Form was made simmilar. I decided though not to use the clay disks that I made for it more then to use them to press nice texture on the glass. I found out with the piece above that they really limit the sourch of light.