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Hocking College Kicks Off Annual Glass Invitational
By: Su Kim
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The Hocking College Art, Design and Marketing program kicked off its eighth annual Glass Invitational Thursday, showcasing work by glass blowing artists from Southeast Ohio.
Robin and Julia Rogers, keynote speakers for the two-day event, shared their passion for the glass blowing profession with attendees.
"Glass is just molten. It's fire and it's intense and seductive and brings you in and you want to play with it," Julia Rogers said. "It's definitely a challenge, but it's a lot of fun and it's a team work. You get to work with a lot of people at once."
"I kind of fell in love with it," said Robin Rogers. "I've been working with the glass for 17 years now. I work with the glass and I do the installation work and other sculpture work."
The duo also discussed technique, style and spoke about the relatively short history of glass blowing, which wasn't produced by local artists until the 1960's.
"Prior to 1962, glass was primarily made in factories in the U.S," said Robin Rogers. " There was no small scale artist's studio. It would be their designer who would design something and factory workers who would make it. There was always a separation between the designer and the maker."
Julia Rogers said she wants students to see the glass blowing profession as more than just a craft.
"A lot of time, people think about it as a craft because you blow the end of the pipe and you make functional wears a lot of times, but it's a sculptual medium and you can really do anything with it, even on the blow pipe. You can sculpt the glass into any form. So I want them to see the possibilities there," Rogers said.
Robin and Julia Rogers' artwork will be on display at the Nelsonville Art Gallery until April 21.