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.
 This stained glass
mirror is
actually two
separate stained glass panels held to the walls of this guest bathroom
with standard mirror clips. You can see how they reflect each other
(you can also see the camera shooting the picture on a self-timer),
which makes it the ideal bathroom mirror since one can see oneself from
the side as well as from the front, making it easy to straighten one's
hairdo!
Stained glass mirrors are projects
that just about every stained glass artisan gets around to sooner or
later. I made lots of mirrors many years ago when, as a hobbyist, I
used to use patterns that other people had
designed. Even after I started creating my own designs, I still made
lots of mirrors. Back then - and I mean more than 30 years ago
- I used to make "production" pieces. That is, I would design fairly
small
window-like artworks, including mirrors, and then produce them over and
over again in slightly different color schemes. I would sell them in
gift stores and at craft shows.
As for
mirrors, I made the obligatory hand-held type,
the tabletop put-on-your-makeup type, and the hang-on-the-wall type.
I'm not knocking production work at all... more than a few stained
glass artisans have excelled at this type of work, and some probably
make more money at stained glass than I do! I'm just glad that it
didn't thrill me enough, so I decided to move on to mastering the art
of making one-of-a-kind artworks. Actually, this period
in my progress as an artist was probably more crucial in my achieving
the level I'm at now than I have ever given it credit. It allowed me to
practice, practice, practice, and to invent and
fine tune the techniques that I now use with every project.
To those of you who do this kind of work or who are novices who've
progressed to
this stage, I want to encourage you to constantly push yourselves to
achieve more... both in design and craftsmanship. I believe
that everyone has it in them to be an artist. The biggest
block is the wrong attitude, saying aloud or to yourself, "I could
never design something on my own." YES
YOU CAN!!! Both design and craftsmanship are skills you can achieve
with [1] the right attitude, [2] the willingness to seek out quality
instruction, [3] the
determination to constantly strive for better work, and [4] the
perseverance to never give up no matter
how many duds you create. Remember, Mark Stine says you're an
artist the moment you think you are one and begin to self-identify
yourself as an artist to yourself and to others! Beyond that, it's just
a
matter of how good an artist you become... and you
can control that too! If it's stained glass you want to
master, you might want to visit my Stained Glass Class on DVD page. To
do that click on the link that says "Classes on DVD" at the top left
corner of this or any page on my web site.
P.S. This
is another example of a project I made a long time ago (this one back
in the 1970s!), so the photograph is not great. |
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