Radiant Horizons: Exploring Plasma & Neon in Kiln-Formed Glass
Kiln Shop, Kiln-formed Glass, Plasma, Neon
Pittburgh Glass Center
Dates: June 10-14, 2024
Tuition: $850.oo
Skill Level: Beginner
A student has no experience or basic skills but is not yet comfortable performing tasks without instructor guidance.
All Skill Levels are welcome! Individual projects will be tailored to your skill level, and you are encouraged to experiment with plasma art in this class.
The class will serve to help enhance your experience using gas plasma light in your glass art. You will learn to prepare the glass forms for the solder, how to kiln fire them, how to create dynamic plasma effects using modified neon manifold, and the special electronics involved in plasma sculpture.
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⚡Summer enrollment: opens on DECEMBER 1st
This class will explore making flat plasma panels from fused glass. Class time will be roughly divided between the Kiln Shop and the Neon/Plasma Shop. In the Kiln Shop, we’ll design and assemble the glass envelope, using plaster or fiber models to shape the glass. These glass parts will then be sealed using solder glass in the kiln.
Class time in the Neon/Plasma Shop will include learning to understand and operate the equipment, preparation and set up, and proper vacuum and filling techniques. We’ll discuss the effects of gas pressure, the use of phosphors for color, choosing power supplies, and possible troubleshooting.
You will learn the basic principles of plasma and new tools to explore flat panel design. This is an area of plasma design and glass sculpture that is rarely explored. Discussion may also include interesting side projects such as the design of “neon signs” made inside solid glass tiles, or flat “nixie tube” panels.
Meet your Instructors
Mark Ditzler
Mark Ditzler is a trained industrial designer, ceramic artist, and self-taught fused glass expert based in Seattle. With over 30 years of experience, he crafts kilnformed glass for commissions and galleries, blending clay techniques seamlessly into his work. Mark has taught fusing classes both locally and nationwide, with a notable tenure at Corning Museum of Glass.
His expertise spans neon tube bending in the 1980s, pioneering fused plasma projects with James Nowark Studio in the 1990s, and a collaborative residency at Corning focused on plasma with Wayne Strattman (2017). His work has graced prestigious venues like Bellevue Art Museum (2018) and Hong Kong Science Museum (2019). Currently, Mark is innovating in plasma, creating a bespoke “hood ornament” for a Corvette in L.A. and pioneering flat “neon” using cutting-edge kiln-forming techniques and glass cutting technology.
Website: www.markditzler.com
Instagram: @markditzlerglassstudio
Percy Echols II
Percy Echols II is a Pittsburgh-based glass artist, alchemist, and educator who pioneers the development of neon and plasma light art at the Pittsburgh Glass Center and is the creator and host of the podcast Taming Lightning. He considers his practice that of alchemy, creating plasma light sculptures, through the technical and artistic expressions of glassblowing with the alchemical and scientific application of electrified gases. His curiosity encourages the exploration of interactivity and subjects that benefit from plasma illumination.
Website: www.percyechols.com
Instagram: @glass.percy
Instagram: @taminglightning
