Trinidad's Artistic Glassworkers
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By Nicole Maio
Sunlight stretches through the windows of Art For
Living, a small downtown art shop in Trinidad, Colorado. Cascading through
glass panels swirled with
pink and pale blue, the rays illuminate the orange,
green, and deep red of a piece of stained glass and gleam on the surface
of glass beads, before slowly tapering off into the studio in the back of
the store. But darkness does not take over from here. Instead, a 5,000-degree
torch flame burns brightly as Trinidad City Planner Sean Holme, who is also
a skilled glass blower, positions a tube of glass in his hand. Slowly, he
rolls it back and forth through the flame until it resembles the glowing
cherry of a cigarette.
A native of Washington, Holmee used
glass blowing to get himself through college and then moved to Trinidad
after getting the job of City Planner. He is currently teaching Allyn Bacon,
owner of Art for Living, the skill of glass blowing. Trinidad, built on coal
mining, may be evolving into an artists' colony, evident by the small galleries,
museums
and different
artisans popping up in the area.
"There're people who seek out Trinidad
for the landscape, just to go out and paint it," Holmee said. He hopes to
see Trinidad continue to grow in as an art center and has confidence that
artists will come to the little town and make it their home.
Consider Allyn Bacon, who shares ownership
of Art For Living with fellow artist Marilyn Casey. Bacon, who works with
glass, wood, leather—even stones and antlers—came to Trinidad
and set up Art For Living with Casey five years ago.
Turning a sheet of glass into an attractive piece
of art is one of Bacon's specialties. The process of creating artful glasswork
begins with a little bit of inspiration, a lot of creativity, and a lifetime
that can be devoted to perfecting the craft. At the right temperature, glass
can be molded, fused, or blown into a vast assortment of shapes and designs.
Allyn Bacon and Sean Holme give a very simplified, elementary tour as they
take us through the steps of several types of glasswork produced in their
studio.
NEXT:
An in depth look at glass blowing
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