Thomas Spake Studios
The colors, textures, and surfaces of Thomas Spake’s hand-blown glass vessels are inspired by the beauty and wonder of the natural world. He gathers references from photographic images, including aerial and drone photography, but the resulting colors and patterns, created layering colored glass chips and powders, are more akin to the sun-dappled scenes of impressionist paintings. By distilling the splendor and monumentality of nature into one-of-a-kind, hand-crafted glass objects, Spake hopes to spark fond recollections of time spent in nature: a trip to a national park, a walk in the woods, or a spring day in a meadow in full bloom. The simple flattened forms create a canvas, a front and a back, where he can fully express his intentions, the tactile quality of the vessels is achieved by a combination of carving and sandblasting the pieces. His unique approach gives the work a tactile quality that offers the audience a treat for the eyes as well as the fingers, and with the blown vessels surface exposed, the soft glow of light is transmitted through the vessel, revealing the true nature of the material. Spake’s glass work incorporates age old glass blowing techniques with good ole American ingenuity to create decorative glass vessels with a style all its own.