For 40 years Gary Genetti has been creating art with glass. Much of his education came through trial and error but through that he has developed a style that has gotten his work featured around the world in galleries, museums, and part of a collection at the Smithsonian Amerian Art Museum. As the glass art market evolved so did his style and how he sold his work. He currently has started a new project called Junkyard Glass and because of a great Kickstarter campaign he was chosen for the new Amazon Launchpad. If you’re getting into the Maker Movement Gary’s story is one you’ll want to listen to a few times.

MEET GARY:

Gary Genetti has been designing and making glass art for over 38 years. Genetti received a Bachelor of Fine Arts with an emphasis in sculpture and graphics from the University of Wisconsin in 1976. In 1978 he began his apprenticeship in a production glass studio and in 1980 established his own studio in rural Warwick, NY.

When Gary Genetti first started blowing as an apprentice to a local glass maker in Warwick, New York, he felt an immediate connection to the material. Hypnotized by the beauty of the process, he would work all day, then practice blowing glass at night. After opening his own studio he started merging an Italian process called incalmo; in which partially blown sections of different colored glass are joined while still hot with sandblast etched motifs that recall ancient Greek and Roman pottery. “The glass is layered during the blowing with various colors and when cool, the piece is etched to reveal that hidden beauty.”

In the last few years, he has expanded his glass making skills to include glass fusing and kiln forming. The possibilities of combining the different approaches in innovative ways has lead to a whole new body of work. Window panels, medallions and bowls made from large murrine fused with multi colored glass overlays and inlays offer a striking contrast to the blown and etched work. “The re-emergence of my interest in pattern and how it works with color have opened new doors in my relationship with this wonderful material.”

His continued experimentation has also lead to a new technique for creating “frit painted” wall pieces that incorporate sand carving and glass inlay. These land and waterscapes advance his interest in natural imagery and evocative settings.

In 2013 he branched out into the world of recycled or upcycled glass with his Junkyard Glass project. Initiated by a trip to the local auto junkyard to assist his two daughters on a school project an idea was born to recycle broken car windows into beautiful products. ” We made a video, launched a campaign on Kickstarter and raised over $10,000 to develop a small socially and environmentally responsible business. We are now selling on Amazon and continuing to develop new and exciting products that keep this waste material out of the landfill!”

In addition to all these developments from the studio, Genetti has also been active in the Hudson Valley, NY creative community by initiating the formation of a nonprofit MakerSpace that repurposes some agricultural buildings on an old prison site that was closed by New York State and turned over to the Town of Warwick. When developed this will be a destination for the entire region for creative activity and entrepreneurship.

CONTACT:

http://genettiglass.com/

74 Walling Road

Warwick, NY

http://junkyardglass.com/

Amazon: Junkyard Glass Bowl

http://www.wickhamworks.org/

https://www.facebook.com/wickhamworks/

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QUESTION(S) OF THE DAY:

What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.