Show Notes by Reginald George

"Glass-blowing for many may bring to mind a handsome, young dude somewhere in a Mediterranean country, wearing thick leather gloves and blowing into existence a beautiful flask through a long tube that he constantly keeps rotating. The brilliant orange object on the end of the tube is so hot it singes his eyebrows. At 2,100 degrees, the liquid in a glass-blowing kiln pours like Karo syrup but avoid putting it on your pancakes. It would incinerate your breakfast, and the pyrotechnics would probably burn through your cookware and table. Even so, the hazards are over-blown.  With safety gear, a little training, and the right tools, an average person can have a lot of fun and create impressive glass art. I had previously heard about glass-blowing classes, and it was on my bucket list. Early in December, a window of opportunity opened, and I got a chance to give it a try. I confirmed that a blind person can leap through such a window, and 30 minutes later walked away, proud to have fashioned a unique glass object. We were in Lincoln City, OR, and visited a business called the Lincoln City Glass Center. Such facilities are a common tourist attraction on the Oregon Coast. The glass-blowing experience generally includes two principal production-approach choices, and then several additional choices of specific, possible formed objects. The production choices are to expand a blob of molten glass with air pressure, or to sculpt a glass form from a small piece of semi-solid glass, adding colors and shaping it with tools." ... my ability to take part in the Lincoln City class was never questioned. In fact, they just assumed that I would be able to complete the required tasks.  Later, I learned that one of the teachers has a visually-impaired son, and this might have had something to do with it. All I know for sure is that I had no trouble and a wonderfully memorable experience." 

So begins Frank's article for the 50th anniversary Winter issue of our WCB Newsline.
We walked in without an appointment, and were welcomed like friends. We wish to thank Daniel Hogan and Molly Whipple of the Glass Center of Lincoln City for making us feel so at home, taking time to describe everything in the gallery and showing us many prize objects, and answering all of our questions.
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