Low Energy use Art Glass: Fused from recycled glass

Making use of cullet and scraps from failed pieces is the idea behind the new series by Micheal Nourot. They are formed over a clay mold in a small lehr that briefly goes to 1600degrees F. to fuse the parts. The dishes, bowls and platters he's made so far resemble the river bottoms of a western mountain stream. Uneven in texture and varied in shape, these glass works are like a crazy quilt of ragged forms. The smoothness of the glass together with the gloriously rich colors of the glass invoke a rugged and sophisticated aesthetic simultaneously. And they use close to no energy compared to the firing of hundred pound batches!