Burchetta Press Releases - Ornamental Art: Helping Wilmington deck the halls

Encore Magazine

Ornamental Art: Helping Wilmington deck the halls
By: Lauren Hodges Dec 10, 2008

View the article as it appeared in Encore

The great American psychiatrist Elisabeth Kubler-Ross once said that people are like glass. “They sparkle and shine when the sun is out,” she observed. “But when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within.”

Perhaps this is why we as humans find glass so beautiful. This delicate substance seizes light and catches the eye. If properly cared for, its beauty can last for centuries. The art of glassblowing has grown in response to a demand for sparkling glass sculptures, ornaments and trinkets.

The invention of glassblowing corresponded with the establishment of the Roman Empire, invented by the Phoenicians in approximately 50 B.C. near the Syro-Palestinian coast. Bits of glass tubes, glass rods and tiny blown bottles discovered in Israel are dated from 37 to 4 B.C. The art has continued to thrive and improve since and remains a relevant skill to this day. Glassblowers have been known to draw vast crowds while performing their craft.

“Everyone remembers the first time they saw live glassblowing,” John Burchetta, owner of Burchetta Glassblowing Studio and Gallery in Wilmington, says. “It’s great fun to see peoples’ faces when they are watching such a spectator art. It is even better when they can design and see their creation come to life.”

Burchetta has been involved with glass for most of his artistic life. As a young man, he attended both the Rhode Island School of Design and the Massachusetts School of Art, eventually receiving a degree in glass design from the University of Kansas. While finishing up his degree, Burchetta opened his first studio and gallery in Kansas City in 1983. In 1985 he relocated the studio back to his home town in Carmel, New York.

Burchetta’s glass creations and artworks have been displayed in museum shops, art galleries and department stores around the country. His hot glass creations have even been nationally televised and highlighted in a few major lifestyle and industry publications. He now runs the studio with fellow glass artist Elizabeth Miele in historic downtown Wilmington. Miele attended Penland School of Crafts in Penland, North Carolina, and has worked in many professional glassblowing studios since 1985.

“Elizabeth has worked with me, for Burchetta Glassblowing Studio and Gallery, since 1987 as a glass designer, production glassblower and gaffer,” Burchetta says. “[She] has designed some of our best-selling items such as the animal night-light series.” Both artists are thrilled to have found a home for the gallery and for themselves in the local art community. “We fell in love with Wilmington and its thriving art scene,” he says of the Port City. “Historic downtown Wilmington captured us with its good food, people, events and weather.”

This month the studio wishes to return some of that cheer to the city it loves by holding a glassblowing workshop for the public in the studio. “We will be making ornaments for Christmas,” Burchetta reveals. “People will be amazed at how molten glass is colored and formed with the use of simple tools. We can guarantee that they will never look at glass the same way again. There is also a huge gallery to discover all of the possibilities that glass has to offer. It is amazing all the different forms that glass can take.”

Interested parties will have two chances to participate. The workshop will consist of two dates on consecutive Sundays this month. The first will be on the 14th and the second on the 21st, with both events running from 10am to 2pm.

“There will be hundreds of art glass colors to choose from,” Burchetta says. “It’s going to be some good family fun, and the ornaments are great as a handmade gift!” Burchetta adds that admission is $40 per person, with group discounts available, but that groups are encouraged to make reservations in advance.

Both “Make Your Own Ornament” events will be held at the Burchetta Glassblowing Studio and Gallery, located at 201 Red Cross Street downtown. Visit www.burchetta.com to view the collection or learn more about the events, and call 910-399-7614 with questions.