"Small Horse Petroglyph"

John & Heather Fields

"I feel very lucky to be doing the work that I love. For me, glassblowing is the perfect combination of art and sports. The physical nature of the process helps keep me engaged during the creation of a piece and sheer frustration motivates me to continue to create."

When John says that he was "saved" in church as a kid he's referring to the fact that he was surrounded by "Tiffany" stained glass windows which fueled his imagination and helped him survive the long services. This exposure early on has led to a life long fascination with glass , color, and light.

John creates his work in the off hand tradition of glassblowing. The inherent layering process of glassblowing allows him to apply color and design components from the background forward. By leaving some clear "windows" through the glass to the first layer and encouraging the colors to interface and react with one another John is able to create the impression of depth and painterly design.

After working many years crafting Tiffany reproduction windows, John took a beginning glass blowing class at Pratt in early 1994, and by years end he had constructed a glassblowing studio in N. Portland. Heather joined the studio in 1995. Her years of experience as a production glass blower in the historic Jamestown glass house was a welcome addition to the shop. With a big grin, John admits to learning some "tricks of the trade" from Heather, but remains a largely self taught glass artist.