SOFA New York Boasts small sales

SOFA, the show at the Armory last April 20--23, 2012. According to their newsletter among reported sales were the following: a major porcelain sculpture with celadon glaze by Sueharu Fukami for $120,000 from Floating World Gallery (Chicago); a  Steffan Dam glass installation at Heller Gallery,  New York for $60,000; an Iconic Libensky/Brychtova cast glass sculpture at Litvak Gallery , Tel Aviv  for $60,000; a Richard Jolley blown glass at Scott Jacobson Gallery ,  New York for $45,000;  Vivian Beer's Forth Bench for $28,000 and Philipp Aduatz's Melting Chair for $19,500, both at Wexler Gallery Philadelphia; a piece by Jun Kaneko called "dango"  for $25,000 Duane Reed Gallery, St. Louis, MO; a  Kent Townsend bubinga cabinet from Jane Sauer Gallery, Santa Fe, NM) for $23,000; and a Kurt Weiser painted porcelain vessel for $16,000 Ferrin Gallery, Pittsfield, MA, and finally a bamboo sculpture by Morigami Jin for $12,500 from the TAI Gallery, Santa Fe, NM.
The auditorium floor looked like this.

Orbix Glass at Seaside Fusion Glass Gallery

If you are in the Seaside, Florida area stop by our gallery Fusion Art Glass to see the Orbix Studio glass by Cal Breed. This man from Alabama makes the most beautiful pieces of blown glass. We love the examples of his work we have had here at our gallery in Benicia. Here is an example of Cal's work. This image is in fact taken in his home studio.
Cal just made a stop at the gallery to promote his work last weekend. If you were there, let us know what it was like.
Hope you agree his work is stunning.

Can you make that piece of blown glass but different for me?

Yes, we can, and this time we did. Exactly. It isn't always possible to match people's expectaions with custom glass work, but this request for a piece that would look dramatic against a similar colored wall in a stairwell came out splendidly.

The California Gold Pattern by Nourot Studio usually has a thinner line and the feeling is more subdued. This detail shot shows the big spiral in the center of the piece.

The client wanted more red, our specialty. This week we are running our trademarked "Red Satin" so it was an easy matter to go bold on the decoration. Other works in "Red Satin" can be found on the new nourot.com website.

Lino Tagliapietra's New Aventurine Series

These small scale hand blown art glass pieces from Italian glass master Lino Tagliapietra are called his "Aventurine Series". The color is a muted antique gold that he gets from a secret source.

The finished piece is comprised of many similar vertical forms that are reminiscent of Middle Eastern glass and metal work.

Mr. Tagliapietra is also working with mixed media; using blown forms with fusing. This will be an entirely different approach than the large blown works he is most famous for to date.

You can read more about Lino Tagliapietra in an April 4th, 2011 interview by The Glass Art Quarterly Blog.

Create a Custom Piece of Blown Glass

Web savvy people and those who've collected Nourot glass are beginning to call the studio regularly with ideas for custom work.  It really not too hard to get the piece you are dreaming of made especially for your home.

Most often we are asked for Kitchen Pendants like for Maria McCullough's home.  See her site that features our Scarlet Nova pendant lights here: http://www.fengshuibymaria.com.  


Others come up with their own unique requests. Recent requests vary from a large flute to fill a fireplace niche ( in Idaho) or a stone wall that is eight feet wide that requires a custom installation of art glass (in Danville, California). We work together to find a solution. Pictures are exchanged. Glass color and patterns in glass at Nourot are discussed and after we come to a mutual decision, the piece is blown.

Here are some recent solutions. Send us your site pictures and we'll make a free standing piece of blown glass or a custom work of wall art in blown glass for you. A unique piece of blown glass by Nourot is the perfect gift for a special anniversary, birthday or life event. Let the artisans of Nourot Studio make unique vivid colored blown glass art for your home or office.  Architectural inquiries are also welcomed.


Contact: 707-745-1463 or email: nourotglass@gmail.com. Nourot Studio Gallery has many fine examples and is currently open Monday through Saturday 10AM--5PM at 675 East H Street, Benicia, California.

Weekend Number One

We are thankful for all the visitors and helpers that participated in our first Holiday Weekend.
There was allot of activity in the blow shop and in the gallery. Thoren Hanks made  glass with both Nick and Micheal.
One of the big torchieres sold, the one with the three Cezanne shades.
We have many ornaments still left and the red glass we made in the last two days is being signed and put out.  A new order of bead jewelry by Marco Polo has arrived.  There are many little sparkly pendants in silver, white and gold.
The Nourot Studio Gallery will be open every day until 12/31 with the exception of the 25th!
Thanks to Leslie Hall for gathering menus and flyers of downtown's restaurants and attractions.  Our visitors now have a great selection of places to go and see after they visit us in the glass gallery.
Last night we took family to Buon Appettito for a great meal. Do you have a good suggestion for a holiday destination nearby us? Share it here or let us know when you come into the gallery.
Today's hours: 10AM--5PM at 675 East H Street, Benicia, CA94510.

Current TV is the place on the web to post your Nourot Glass Studio videos from your trip to our hot glass works.

We especially like the piece of "film" on a Mr.Gelb, of Ithaca, New York, making lamp worked glass under the title Blow My Glass."

Lampworking is the process where glass is made at the open flame with tubes or rods of a special high tensile strength glass called quartz silica glass. New techniques for making glass even in a large scale, using this method is gaining in popularity due in part the classes for Lampworking Glass in individual studios and colleges.

A quick web search shows that the site: www.blowmyglass.com is available. Perhaps a school/studio should take this up. For a long time there had been a site: www.makemeblow glass.com. This was the guy who had the splatter platters on black forged iron stands that you used to see at the crafts market in Philadelphia. It's expired now.

However the site advertising blowmyglass.com mentions that we might also be interested the site blowmygoat.com because it has 22 in links. Hmm...22, that is tempting SEO. We're content with our own Nourot Benician Glass sites as they are, although some mention of blow my glass on every page may be upcoming.

Something fishy around here

You may have wondered why we have been out of touch so much this summer. There is one reason that stands out and this picture may give you a clue.

No, we aren't at work blowing glass fish. That's one of Michael Hopko's master pieces shown here, but we've been away on the trail of the wild California trout.

It's been mostly an impressive season. The hatches have been up to par with the best of other years. We have not been disappointed, well, not too often.

The studio, alas, has suffered. But now we have returned to fire up the furnaces--which we are doing today July 12th. Getting back to work will feel very good. Hope the cool San Francisco weather holds!

Come visit us glass making this week at 675 E "H" Street in old town Benicia, California. The center of town is just 6 1/2 blocks away and the waterfront is full of other things to do. You can walk from our shop to First Street by the marina and see all the sailboats and yachts! It's not too far to the Rellik Tavern, the tony new watering hole that is know equally for it's coffee and breakfast pastries as well as it chocolate martinis later in the day. It's located at the corner of "H" and First Street in Benicia.

Spring Sale in one week

Save 30% on every Nourot made piece in the gallery starting April 29; 30 and May 1; 2. Nourot Glass Studio's annual Spring Open House and Sale coincides with Arts Benicia Open Studios, too: May 1 and 2.

New in the gallery this time will be the work of Craig and Anny Zweifel. They are the guest artists this year. As well as demonstrating goblet making, they will be here showing their glass works (pictured).

Demonstrations of glass making will be as long as the glass lasts for the four day show. You can see up close how works of beauty in hand blown glass take form right before your eyes. Get as close as you dare to the 2,000 degree "glory holes" and watch the expert crafts people at the Nourot Studio make goblets, vases, paperweights and other items out of their signature red glass.

Hours are 10Am to 5PM April 29; 30 and May 1; 2. Location is: 675 East H Street in old town Benicia, California. Take the 5th street exit off Freeway 780 or turn East off First Street (six blocks away) and follow H to the end.

Smyers Glass is located in the same building as Nourot and will be showing their style glass items during the Spring Open House.

For more information or to schedule a tour at another time please call the Nourot Gallery at 707-745-1463.