Dante Marioni & Ben Edols
Dante Marioni began blowing glass at the age of 16, studying with Benjamin Moore, Lino Tagliapietra, and Richard Marquis. His works, which recreate the extremely advanced techniques passed down by Venetian glass blowers with modern colors and a sense of design, have made him a household name in the world of glass at the age of 19.
His works are simply stunning, blending the meticulous and brilliant Kane techniques admired by glass artists the world over with a contemporary sensibility.
Currently based in Seattle, he is an instructor at the Pilchuck Glass School and other workshops around the world.
Ben Edles received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the Sydney College of the Arts and completed his graduate studies at the Canberra School of Art in 1992.
He and his wife, Kathy Elliott, conduct glassblowing workshops at the Pilchuck Glass School, Corning Museum of Glass Art Studio, Toyama Glass Art Institute, Niijima Glass Center, Jam Factory, and the Sydney College of the Arts. Their unique plant-inspired blown and sculpted glass vessels and sculptures are in the collections of museums in Australia and around the world.
Cups, Canes and small objects
Laying the ground work for a solid understanding of contemporary studio glass blowing, this will be a technical class focused skill building. Through demonstrations and repetition we be pursuing excellence of hand skills and team work.
letter to students
We are very much looking forward to being back in Niijima and meeting you all. This class will be a technical class focused on giving you clear instruction around some core glass blowing technique. What was called ‘Italian style’ a few decades ago has now become the pervasive ‘norm’ across Nth America, Austraila and much of the studio glass world. The principles of making fine glass on centre from the gather to punty will be looked at carefully and in detail.
There will be daily tasks and instruction based on demosations of tumblers, goblets, bowls and other small vessels. We will be pursuing excellence through repetion and attention to small detail. I would encourage you all to use either clear furnace glass and or make the most of the opinunity of the unique and Iconic Niijia coloured glass.
You should bring your personal hand tools and some colour bar if you can. ‘Hard’ colours for cane making could be put to excellent use later in the session to tie in with the demo’s. Bulleye make an excellent White called Marko Blanko, Gaffer Duro colours may also be available later in the year. Also bring a sketch pad or journal, pencils or pens for note keeping and ideas.
See you soon,