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Dana Worley - kiln-formed glass artist

Glass Art, Inspired by Nature

I make my home in the foothills of Northern Utah. This beautiful high mountain desert, its surrounding areas, and my travel experiences provide inspiration for my glass art. 

 

When I am in nature, I am captivated by color, texture, light, and movement. These details are captured in my mind (and often with my camera). When I return to my studio these impressions serve as inspiration. I recreate these experiences by layering sheet glass, glass frit (varying-sized chunks of glass), glass enamels, and glass powders that are then fired in a kiln. All pieces require multiple firings and are typically in the kiln 20 to 30 hours with each firing. Sheet glass most often provides the basis for building my design. Glass enamels, glass frit, and glass powders allow me to express movement in my art, while controlling firing temperatures in the kiln allows me to create dimension, texture, and reflected light.

 

A lot of my creativity is inspired by water. It’s odd, perhaps, given that I live in a high mountain desert that receives most of its annual precipitation in snowfall. But water - however scarce it may be where I live - is one of the places I find solace, rejuvenation, and yes, inspiration. 

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 My hope is that through my art I am able to recreate these experiences in glass to share with others. My art is not usually a literal translation of my influences, but rather my attempt to capture their essence. If others can experience some of the joy and inspiration while viewing my art that I felt during these experiences, then I feel I have succeeded in my efforts.

 

I began working with stained glass in the early 1990s and discovered fused glass in 2009. While I am creative, I am also very analytical. Fused glass (glass fired in a kiln) is a perfect blend of scientific process and creative expression.

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I am an advisory board member and Education Chair for the Glass Art Guild of Utah and a founding member of The Artists’ Gallery in downtown Logan. I maintain a blog on fused glass at jestersbaubles.blogspot.com and author articles on fused glass for industry-specific magazines.

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In August 2023, I left my "day job" as a Technical Support Manager for a scientific instrumentation company so I could focus on my art and other passions. When I am not creating in my studio, I enjoy yoga, hiking, biking, cross-country skiing, travel, and photography.

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