When did the technique known as lampworking begin? Perhaps as long ago as ancient man and the accidental combination of fire and sand. Early craftsmen created a small earthen- ware furnace fueled by wood that was shaped like a bee hive. The heat and gas that escaped through the opening in the top was hot enough to melt and form glass. Use of similar beehive furnaces have been recorded in many ancient civilizations—Egyptian, Japanese and North African. Glass beads were used in commerce and trading all over the ancient world for centuries.

The Romans also used beehive furnaces, but were the first to use a hollow pipe to extract the glass and discovered that blowing through the pipe produced a bubble. This revolutionized the way glass was worked for the next thousand years. The Italians became the most advanced in this technique and by the beginning of the Renaissance, glass blowing had spread across the continent and across most of Asia.

In 1450 Angelo Barovier, working in Murano, invented Crystallo—a clear soda glass that met the needs of alchemists who needed clear and durable vessels to mix and measure chemicals. When the scientist’s need became mere precise equipment, a more sufficient method was developed to produce small objects. It was discovered that forcing a narrow stream of air into the flame of an oil lamp produced sufficient heat to soften and work small pieces of glass. Lampworking had been born.

At first the lampworkers used just their breath, then later a hand-held bellows. The invention of a foot-bellows with an expandable air bladder resulted in a more consistent steam of air through the flame. With this new technique, lampworked items were more affordable and by the 18th century many small novelty items were being produced and sold all over Europe. Figurines of people and animals were popular as well as Christmas ornaments. Venice was famous for beads and millefiore, tiny murrines that looked like real flowers.

At the turn of the 20th century, the German father-son team Rudolph and Leopold Blaschka, already famous for their glass models of marine life, was commissioned to create detailed botanical models of common and exotic plants from Europe and North America. Over the next 50 years, using a simple bellows-driven lamp and home-made tools, they created nearly 3000 models of plants, magnified plant parts and anatomical sections. The models were so lifelike that it is almost impossible to distinguish them from the real thing. Most of these are still on display at the Harvard Botanical Museum.

In 1924, scientists at the Corning glass factories invented borosilicate glass (Pyrex). It was much more resilient and reliable for use in scientific equipment. But because the melting temperature was higher, a newer method of heating the glass was needed. Torches burning oxygen and natural gas were developed and these were later replaced by the modern surface-mix bench burners used today.

Although Pyrex was developed for scientific instruments, artisans began using it to create novelty pieces to sell at carnivals, theme parks and later, shopping malls. How many of you remember the swans filled with colored water? Fortunately, the Venetians continued working with traditional soda glass producing brightly colored pieces of unequaled quality.

In Czechoslovakia, Vera Liskova elevated borosilicate lampworking into fine art. She created large striking abstract sculptures during the 1970’s until her death in 1979. One of her students was Anna Skibska.

In the mid 1960’s Hans Godo Frabel came to the U.S. from East Germany to work as a scientific glassblower in Atlanta. His dream was to use lampworking as an art medium and in 1968 he founded his own studio and gallery. His sculptures were nontraditional and considered innovative. In 1975, Ginny Ruffner had just graduated from University of Georgia and went to work for Frabel. She worked there for 5 years and then went out on her own. Her work was so unique and creative that she received almost immediate acclaim. For the first time, lampworking was recognized as a medium for fine art by critics, gallery owners and collectors.

Source material is from an article written by Robert Mickelson, a professional lampworker who shows his work in galleries and exhibitions. He has taught at Pilchuck, Penland School of Crafts, and Corning Museum of Glass. He also has produced videos on his flameworking process and has written many articles. For more information check out this article at beadbugle.com