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Jack Storms, the Crystal Machinist

By Rain Noe - January 29, 2015

in Materials | Fine Art

For butterfingered woodworkers, dropping a project on the shop floor can be bad. But just imagine if your materials of choice were crystal and glass.

Since 2004, California-based artist Jack Storms has been producing these rare "optic sculptures." Created by precision-machining lead crystal and dichroic glass, a single piece can take up to 18 weeks to produce.

While Storms has advanced the art by inventing a lathe that allows him to turn glass like wood, he first learned the "cold-glass" process of joining lead crystal and dichroic glass from a glass artist in New Hampshire. "Working side by side with the artisan for over a year, Jack learned every component and facet of this incredibly challenging and rare art form and eventually was a strong enough sculptor to branch out on his own in 2004 and open StormWorks Studio," reads the bio on his website.

We found it a little strange that Storms doesn't mention, in either the bio or the video below, the name of his mentor; usually when we see someone who's learned a rare art form, one of the first things they'll mention when discussing it is the person who shared the initial knowledge with them.

In any case, if like me you're wondering How the hell can a human being create these things, check out the process in the video below:

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Pete Vande3rLaan

9 years ago

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Actually, it's more likely Toland Sand who began heavily copying Kuhn in the mid '90's. Sand Lives in Sanbornton NH. He lifted a lot of technique from Mary Beth Bliss as well, who at the time was a New Mexico artist. but has since moved to New Hampshire, her childhood home.

Either way, it's not groundbreaking, that's for sure.
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Eric

9 years ago

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I was not able to watch the entire video, he is just to great for his own video.
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Stephanie Neale

2 years ago

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I bought one of your beautiful cubes from cs@stanlly-a.com . What I got was a poorly constructed Plexiglas cube (edges of the sides rough with bubbles) and an actual photocopy of the colored part.. I couldn't believe it! So then my partner tucked it away from my sight and forgot where he put it, and now I can't even return it. He'll pay for that somehow, no worries. I'm not asking for anything from you, I just wanted you to know that site is doing you wrong. REALLY wrong.

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Terri Nunn

7 years ago

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The ORIGINAL cold glass sculptor is JOHN KUHN. His studio is in Winston Salem NC. His work is world renown and more than likely the mystery mentor. http://www.kuhnstudio.com/

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- Joseph Chesanow
  
  Terri Nunn
  
  7 years ago
  
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  His mentor is Toland Sand, and you can definitely credit him for stealing a bunch of techniques from other artists.
  
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N. C.

9 years ago

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He is SO GOOD at art! So good.

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- N. C.
  
  N. C.
  
  9 years ago
  
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  I just barfed into my keyboard.
  
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Pete VanderLaan

9 years ago

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Actually, it's more likely Toland Sand who began heavily copying Kuhn in the mid '90's. Sand Lives in Sanbornton NH. He lifted a lot of technique from Mary Beth Bliss as well, who at the time was a New Mexico artist. but has since moved to New Hampshire, her childhood home.

Either way, it's not groundbreaking, that's for sure.
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9 years ago

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daniel erwin

9 years ago

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The guy he learned from is presumably Jon Kuhn (http://www.kuhnstudio.com/#), who's been at this since the '80s, if I remember correctly.
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