Fusing Glass with Danielle Styles
At Qamber Kids, we focus on illustration, but many of our artists are proficient in different mediums. Danielle Styles, illustrator for Millicent Marie and Aidan and the End of the World, recently shared how she plans to branch out with her own glass designs. We hope you enjoy reading as Danielle shares a bit about the glass-working process, and shares a bit on how it works!
“The glitter of the sea was like a glass in my eyes.”
- Steve Erickson
On the Journey
I actually never did anything with glass, not even at the art school I graduated from, until I got introduced to my now boss. I currently do fused glass work with another artist, Nina Cambron (I’m her one and only studio assistant!). We don’t do any glassblowing (although I would love to try it sometime in the future) only fusing in a kiln. I recreate Nina’s pieces that she sells online (at www.ninacambron.com) for galleries and the art website: www.artfulhome.com
This year, I am branching out doing some small ornament designs that will be sold exclusively for Artful Home. In creating these pieces I was able to use my illustration skills to design three animal pieces that are now featured in their holiday catalogue and on their website. Anyone who is familiar with me knows animals are my absolute favorite to draw so these ornaments definitely reflect my style!
How it Began
I had no prior knowledge of fused glass until I was introduced to Nina by a friend from high school who told me about his mom needing someone to help out in her studio. Once I started working with her and seeing what she made I was transfixed and loved how beautiful and vibrant her pieces were.
While I was going to college for illustration, I worked for Nina part time doing small tile pieces and helping her pack and ship her products. She taught me all I know about glass. My sense of design and color usage has improved a ton since working with her. She is a master of the craft, and still teaching me techniques, even though I have worked for her for over 10 years now.
How It Works
The process for fusing (not glassblowing) is mainly using a hand held glass cutter tool (see attached picture below) to cut out shapes in colored sheets of glass that are thin and flat.
After scoring the glass with the cutter we use a glass breaking tool called runner pliers to essentially break the shape out. It takes quite awhile to get the hang of, and you are limited on the shapes you can break out. Because glass is so brittle, anything more complex than a simple curve is almost impossible to get unless you have a wet saw or you use a water jetter. Straight lines are thus the easiest to cut out.
After cutting out the desired shape, a lot of times you won’t have a super “clean” cut so you have to use a glass grinder to grind the edge of the glass so it’s exactly the shape you want.
With our pieces we always have a piece of clear glass at the bottom of the piece that we then layer the other colors/ designs on top of, using a special glass glue to secure the layers together. Then we put them carefully into a kiln where the pieces fuse together into a beautiful smooth finished piece. We can also add 3 dimensional shape into it with a second firing using clay molds that the pieces will melt on top of and form around.
Doing What I Love
I have grown to truly love the art form along with all its challenges and misgivings (my hands ALWAYS have cuts on them, but I’m so used to it now I hardly notice). Being able to hold a final fused glass piece is so satisfying, the colors and depth are just so different from anything you could possibly get from painting. I think that’s part of why I love it so much, it’s just a whole different way of creating, and the glass can just be so beautiful, especially the iridescent type that shimmers in the light!
“You use a glass mirror to see your face, you use works of art to see your soul.”
- George Bernard Shaw
Meet the Artist
“Exploring the world of fused glass has led me to a love and admiration for the medium and of its strikingly vibrant colors, and of the gloss and shine of a finished and fired piece.”
Danielle Styles uses her background in illustration as inspiration for her color combinations and compositional elements. Being a lover of nature and especially of the animal world is quite apparent in her pieces. She loves the challenges and nuances working in glass presents, as well as how satisfying it is when a piece comes out just how she imagined (or sometimes even better!)
Danielle uses a glass cutter to cut out the shapes she desires in colored glass sheets. She also uses paint to enhance her work and add a distinctive illustrative touch. Fusing the pieces together forms a smooth, precise design.
Danielle Styles graduated from the College for Creative Studies with a degree in illustration in 2012. Two years prior to graduating she clandestinely met and began working with fused glass artist extraordinaire (and fellow Artful Home contributor) Nina Cambron. Ten years later she is still working with Nina as a studio assistant, while also pursuing illustration work on the side. Working with Nina has brought about Danielle’s love for the medium of glass as well as growing her sense of design, composition, and color theory.
