Linda Smith

Posted on September 29, 2009 by Sawdust Art Festival

Prelude
I don’t make what I see out of the window, I make what I see in my heart. My work is about color and imagination. I’m influenced by my family, friends, and surroundings.

It’s been a personal quest, finding what I want to express, and learning how to create it. After years of taking art classes, I found fused glass. It’s perfect for me, like painting, but with glass. I love how all the tiny details combine into a harmonious whole.     

Process
Each piece is individually made using sheets of fusible glass. I use clear glass for the base. I cut and place pieces of colored glass on this base to form the design. The background consists of colored glass cut to fit into the design, like a mosaic. The spaces in between are filled with frit, which is ground glass. The plate is then fired to 1500 degrees, which causes all these separate pieces to melt together into one smooth piece of glass.