Blown glass in the glass city

A teardrop of molten glass was spun by apprentice gaffers as Ross Richmond shaped the 2400 degree piece with what looked like an oven mitt. The future vase was created by Richmond and his partner Keke Cribbs at the glass blowing demonstration held after the completion of the pair's residency at the University of Toledo.

The demonstration was of the non-traditional technique Richmond and Cribbs developed and it can be described as something closer to glass sculpting rather than blowing. They devoted their residency at the University of Toledo to honing the techniques that they created.

Cribbs and Richmond have been collaborating since last November. "This is only my and Ross's third time working together," said Cribbs. And according to Richmond, this is his biggest collaboration thus far.

The duo spent two days with Ben Moore, a prominent professional glass blower in Seattle, Wash. The first two days went so well, said Cribbs, that they were able to secure a third day — the photos from which earned them residencies at the University of Toledo as well as Tacoma University.

The vase that was made in front of a room packed with spectators in the Glass Pavilion this past Friday took approximately two hours to complete. However, the glass blowing process in general can be as involved as the artist wishes. Depending on how ornate the vase is, an artist could spend anywhere from 15 minutes to 8 hours on a single project.

The vase created by Richmond and Cribbs used a new spout forming technique. In this technique, the gaffer, who is in charge of making the piece, creates a bubble at the top of the glass, in between the finished part and the blow pipe that it is fused to.

The bottom of the bubble is thinned with large scissors and later holes are created along the indentation. The vase is then broken off after it has been attached to another pipe allowing the artist to create a smoother spout. "I don't like that melted chocolate candy look," said Cribbs when describing the difference between the new technique and traditional spout forming techniques.

When creating a piece of artwork out of glass, the glass must be warmed to 1000 degrees before it can be placed in the main furnace, where it will reach 2400 degrees. This warming process is performed in a smaller portable oven called a "garage." If the glass is not properly heated, it will break.

To create a picture on the surface of the vase, a chunk of molten glass is rolled in a colored glass powder design. The multilayer design used for the piece made on Friday was created by Cribbs.

Flat figurines were also added on the outside of the piece. The illusion of a halo was created around these figures by adding a dusting of white glass powder over them that was swept off before reinserting the vase into the furnace through a hole no larger than the piece itself.

During creation, the true color of the glass is not apparent and will not be until 24 hours after the vase has been completed.

The coloring process, which took approximately an hour, must be completed before they can "blow out" the piece.

The blowing out process required four people. Richmond, the gaffer, was aided by a posse of assistant gaffers: one who helped turn the vase, one to shield the gaffer from being burned, and another who helped shape the vase.

A popping sound signaled the lighting of the torch that is used to keep the vase at the right temperature while it was not in the oven. Heat and gravity was used to shape and blow out the vase.

When the vase was complete an apprentice gaffer, dressed in full safety gear, caught the piece as it was broken from the pipe.

Cribbs has been doing glass work for 30 years. Since her background is in print making, it is only natural that her specialty is what she calls "hot printing," which is creating a print design to be placed on the glass.

Richmond said he doesn't do what Cribbs does and is strictly a glass blower. "I know the proper techniques for heating, blowing and shaping the glass…I don't really know much about what Keke does and she doesn't know a lot about what I do."

However, according to Richmond, this duality brings their strengths together in a positive way.

"Each person's strengths bring more to the pot…[and] the result is phenomenal," said Cribbs.

Richmond has been blowing glass for 19 years and said he gained interest in the craft after taking a class on the subject as an elective in college. "I didn't think I'd get a chance to ever do it [glass blowing] again."

Cribbs said she hired Richmond as a gaffer for his unique translation process—fitting her designs to the glass. "You don't see his kind of talent," Cribbs said, "His talent allows me to be more spontaneous in my designs."

When coming up with certain words to describe their work together, Keke says one of the words her and Ross agreed on was "improvisation."

"Everything is theatrical. We use intuition to act off and balance each other," said Cribbs. "We give each other enough space to make intuitive decisions."

Cribbs and Richmond are currently in the midst of a four day class during which they are teaching the new spout forming technique for the first time. "It's cool to make discoveries and hand them over to other people."

For a glimpse of what Richmond and Cribbs can create, make a journey to the Glass Pavilion, where the museum has on display a vase they purchased that the team created on the last day of their residency.