Oak Kiln

Decorating With Art Glass

Have you really considered the language used for art glass? Most find these terms both numerous and perplexing, so much so that I threw a ringer right in the title. For starters, mica isn’t glass at all, as most of us learned in elementary science class. Rather, mica’s a mineral that flakes nicely into translucent sheets. Thus many find it ideal for use in making lamp shades, such as the famous “coolie” shades made by Dirk van Erp.

“Art glass” is certainly a catch-all term that can be used to refer to most kinds of decorative glass in period lighting, windows, doors or hand-blown vases, but terms do exist that are more accurate and specific. Let’s begin with a tough one: figuring out the distinction between stained and leaded glass. The stained glass used in European cathedral windows of centuries past is actually colored glass that’s been painted with vitreous oxides and fired, either with or without the application of silver nitrate. This stain glass is considered to be leaded. Individual pieces of the composition or mosaic were held in place with lead cames, which you can recognize as the dark matter holding together the bits of light-filled glass.

Fortunately, nowadays things are much simpler. Modern usage of the term “stained glass” is considered by most people to be any window with colored glass. If a clear glass window is leaded, it’s just simply call “leaded.”

Minerals give colored glass its tint. But not all stained glass is transparent. Translucent stained glassed are most often referred to as “opalescent.” Yet what is considered to be opalescent glass isn’t transparent; rather it’s milky. Further, it can have more than one color in a sheet. Tiffany windows are a great example of opalescent glass.

{Another notable example of this is the windows by Greene & Greene, who layered their glass the same way as Tiffany, but they used copper foil and lead overlay to enhance the dimensional quality of their compositions.} Greene & Greene’s glass is actually very common. Iridized on one surface so it has the appearance of a rainbow, it’s been used by Frank Lloyd Wright and Tiffany.

In 1894, Tiffany trademarked its version of this shimmering opalescent glass and called it Favrile. This iridescent glass is truly remarkable, as it appears to change colors when viewed from various angles. Other companies also made iridized glass, but none used the term Favrile.

We’ve clarified what mica, stained glass, leaded glass, opalescent, iridescent, and Favrile all are. What exactly are slag and slumped? Well, slag glass is the term used for the sheets of opalescent glass slipped into Arts and Crafts light fixtures. (The word “slag” actually comes from the undocumented belief that the glass got its color from slag from iron smelting works.) The term slumped glass refers to glass that’s been fired in the kiln to make it curve. Glass artisans will actually get into the kiln to manipulate the glass into shades, which are first “slumped” over a bowl. Artists can even create more complicated shapes, ranging from delicately folded glass in a tulip-like shade to futuristic shapes that resemble a translucent article marshmallow after a swipe through the campfire.

Avo Barsoumian has been part of the interior decorating and interior flooring community for the past 25 years. He is the owner and manager of a popular carpet installation company in Orange County. The offer the largest selection of elegant hardwood flooring, beautiful laminate flooring and plush carpeting under one roof. Searching for that perfect laminate flooring for bathrooms for your new condo or carpets discounter to remodelupdate your older home? Then give Carpet Wagon a call.

Unloading the wood fired Anagama Pottery Kiln January 1st 2009