"Big Bang +1, which was created in October, 2018, and was named while it was on the pontil, just before it went into the annealing oven.  What I saw on what would be the top of the sphere looked like a wonderfully colored, cosmic star burst.  My mind immediately associated the image with the Big Bang theory – a single violent eruption in which the Universe was created.  However, it was not the moment of the Big Bang itself, it was an infinitely small period of time immediately after the explosion.  I chose to label that moment, and the piece, as Big Bang +1. "

 In addition to various written responses Andrew was asked to provide a photo of himself. The photo he sent, below, was representative of his breakthrough in working with a dichroic pattern called Splatter.  The 19” disc on the right is typical of this type of dichroic glass as it comes from a vacuum deposition chamber in which it is made.  The factory was having trouble selling this type of dichro due to the diaphanous nature of the color.  The smaller disc on the left is representative of what Andrew developed; it is the result of stacking approximately 10 discs each covered with 10 depositions of Splatter.

Splatter had never been blown before so they sent him several sheets to see if he could do anything special with it. He started by blowing a single layer, but the result was totally unimpressive.  He then tried blowing two fused layers, then four and the results started to get interesting.  When he blew out 6 layers with a black background layer the result was The Big Bang +1, a 9” sphere, pictured below.  This piece won first prize in the 2019 Dichro by Design Contest, the largest such contest in the world.

When provided with the requested information and having been able to see the piece first-hand, the Board decided to add this piece to their permanent collection.  As of this date, Big Bang + 1 is now in the permanent collection of the Chrysler Museum.  Suffice it to say Andrew is thrilled. 

The other piece the Executive Director and the Curator of Glass put forward to their Board is called “The Bean.”  Andrew had long considered this piece to be the house mascot. The museum loves to learn which pieces are most important to the artist, and then take those. Andrew said that, “giving up such special pieces hurts, but if this august organization wanted it, I felt I absolutely had to let them to have it.”  In this case, before deciding on whether to acquire the piece, they had a question about the shape.  Andrew responded as follows:

“My sculpture “The Bean” was designed and created in November, 2017. The shape was a direct result of my love of Anish Kapoor’s sculpture “Cloud Gate” in Chicago's Millennium Park.  I try to visit this sculpture whenever I am in Chicago and it has had a profound effect on me.  From a distance I find Cloud Gate truly soothing and delightful.  Up close I feel like I am in the presence of something enormous which is there and yet not there.  The all-encompassing reflective surface simply beguiles me.

While I enjoy many of Mr. Kapoor’s art works, no other piece has affected me as much.  In my struggle to make art that is soothing and pleasing it is no surprise that I would turn to this shape for the first blown glass dichroic sculpture that I would make."

Andrew is very pleased to report that The Bean, which is 10”L x 6”H x 6”W, is also now in the permanent collection of the Chrysler Museum.

It turns out that Andrew has been actively trying to place other sculptures in museums.  The piece immediately below which he calls the Odd Pod is now in the permanent collection of the Fort Wayne Museum of Art, in Fort Wayne, Indiana. It is i 6”T x 6.5W x 5.75D. This museum has a growing focus on contemporary glass. In this case the decision to acquire the sculpture was quick and decisive, based simply on a good photo.  Needless to say, both parties are delighted!

The center of the Odd Pod, which is dichroic glass which he formed in a mold.  Once the molded center is sufficiently cooled it is then surrounded by clear glass.  After that is placed in an annealing oven and completely cooled, it is then faceted and optically polished. The style is called a sommerso, from the Italian for “submerged.”  It is a style that Andrew continues to work with, although the faceting and polishing can be very expensive.

Andrew has one more piece of glass that is currently in the hands of a collector who has willed it to the museum at the University of St. Francis, also in Fort Wayne, Indiana.  This museum also has a major focus on glass.  The piece, which is a 6.25” sphere, is called Faceted Pixie Dichro, and is another sommerso:

Andrew reports that this is where the matter stands at the moment.  He is currently having a wonderful time making new glass, and looks forward to doing so in the future!