Nancy Callan and Katherine Gray will be doing a live glassblowing demonstration at Berlin Glas e.V.

Glass blowing is not a dainty art. It’s tough. It’s hot. And it’s dangerous. If you want to get an idea, tape a brick to the end of a broom, hold it up and keep it rotating. Do this in a sauna and imagine the broom handle is getting hotter. You have to be strong, dedicated, creative and having asbestos skin helps.
Men have been blowing glass for thousands of years, but Women only managed to muscle their way in 40 years ago, paving the way for artists like Katherine Gray and Nancy Callan.

Katherine Gray studied at the Rhode Island School of Design and is now a professor at California State University San Bernardino. She is a conceptual, contemporary mixed media artist who has spent years mastering the art of glassblowing.

Nancy Callan studied at the Massachusetts College of Art and learnt Venetian techniques of glassblowing from Lino Tagliapietra, one of very few Venetian Maestros to leave the island of Murano and share his skills. Nancy has a particular interest in cane working, creating stunningly intricate patterns often influenced by pop culture or fashion fabrics. In a previous collaboration with Katherine, Katherine wanted to make mushrooms and Nancy liked Katherine’s shorts….

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We can’t wait to see how they collaborate on the 30th of March at Berlin Glas e.V. Come and watch these two Masters at work in this public demonstration of skill and true creativity.

The images are taken from a video of Nancy Callan’s TED talk. Watch the whole thing HERE.