SHINE A LIGHT

I like making functional art, but I don’t mean making bongs or pipes as some will call them. Those items used in drug businesses for smoking happy stuff doesn’t really interest me. What I can functional glass art is anything I suppose. I mean if you look at a piece of art and it makes you feel good then the artists have made something that you regard as having a function. Art for arts sake must be the best type of functional art. What’s the opposite? Dysfunctional? Just a matter of perspective.

I regard glass candleholders as one of the most obvious and useful pieces of functional glass art. I love making them and have made hundreds of different designs during the last fifty years. Key is having the right candle and for many years I used “Prices” candles made by, surprise, surprise a company called “Prices”. Straight sided with a diameter about 12mm then these types of candles were perfect for my designs. Reason being is that the 12mm diameter was exactly the same size as some carbon rod I had, and I used this rod to shape the holes for the candles.

When I moved to Caithness in 1981 than it seem friendly to shop locally and I used a certain size candle made by Caithness Candles. These were contoured and tapered so tricky to fit snug into a glass candle holder. A tight fit is vitally important when design holders. No one wants a wobble with their candles. Its dangerous for one thing. I have found wrapped clear sticky tape around the end of candles allows the slack to be addressed and the candle can be secured easy.

Then came tea lights which upset the whole glass candle industry. I may be exaggerating here as probably many saw this type of candle a blessing. They are squat and don’t really lend themselves to be displayed in anything elegant. Doesn’t matter what the material used is. Be it metal wood or glass then shaping a holder for tealights can be boring.

Once I was sent gold and silver candles which I used for some special anniversary candle holders. Trouble was the colours burnt off almost immediately and when pushing a candle into a glass tube the again the colours rubbed off. My favourite colour is perhaps not a colour for its white. Gets a bit grubby if over handling it, especially if you have been handling carbon but hey ho there must be a market out them for dirty candles in mucky glass holders!

I have made candle holders which have combined shaped of dancers, of sports [players and of animals. It easy just to shape some glass and heat it up to fuse it to an existing design. Well, it’s easy for me!

Making a pair of candle holders is not easy as most customers like candle holders to all be identical heights so as to look good on their mantelpiece. I have made candelabras which have been a lot easier since all glass arms are at different heights.

As most know I am not a great lover of making coloured glass but at times I can’t escape the allure that coloured glass radiates. I have been asked to make coloured glass candle holders and have for my sins painted the clear glass with the desired to create to perfect result. However, what happens is the candle burns down low and when reaches the colour glass sets the paint on fire and stinks the whole area where the candle holder has been placed. Not a great effect for many dinners parties. To overcome this, I have used lustres which are fired in a kiln and thus are more permanent. I have even painted candles when I can’t find the colour of choice. I made a large candle holder sculpture which held twenty-one candles, seven were white, seven were red and seven were blues. I painted the white ones blue but daren’t light them for fear of an explosion. Boom boom!