The Casting Studio
The glass casting process begins with a wax sculpture or vessel that is encased in a plaster mold (investing). The mold is filled with glass and put in an electric kiln where the glass melts and fuses.
Weeks are spent detailing and investing the wax, firing and annealing the glass, and finally, divesting and hand polishing the finished piece.
Unlike bronze casting, which can be poured and de-invested within a day, a glass mold is often in a kiln for up to a month. Glass must heat up and cool down very slowly to remove any stress.
Above, a wax vase. Below, the finished glass piece.
Artists preparing to create a plaster mold