I came across a lot of lovely pieces of glass during my recent trip to Seattle. Some of them were spectacular (see this and this blog entry for more) while others were decidedly more muted.
I liked the color and shape of this one...it reminded me of the light in my late grandparents' apartment on a Sunday morning. Like their home, the window of this space faced east, and the sun never seemed to shine directly in. Instead, the light was somewhat diffused, and it gave everything in the place a slightly gloomy, shadowy cast. Surfaces, especially curved ones, seemed to be much richer as a result.
This place in a distant city took me right back to a time when these memories first formed, long before I was able to understand their significance.
Your turn: If someone can share some background on this city's apparently deep glass blowing heritage, I'd love to hear it. Alternatively, feel free to tell us about an image from your own childhood that refuses to leave you.
Hi carmi,
ReplyDeleteBeautiful vases! Love the colors...
I found your blog doing the "Next Blog" thing at the top of the page.
Btw, check my Q&A blog called "The Big Question" at http://bigquestion2day.blogspot.com . If you get time, come answer a few questions (I post a new one each day). It's cool to see all the answers from the diverse group of readers that visit.
Take care,
Sublime
With the recent passing of my mom, I am bombarded with memories like this right now. I love the way you discribe the light in your grandparent's house. I can remember being a very little girl playing in my grandfather's tailoring shop. I would run under the racks of cloths and play hide and seek under the drycleaning.
ReplyDeleteMy paternal grandparents home was all about windows and light. An old Northeastern split ranch, as the day progressed the light changed within.
ReplyDeleteThe memories remain of specific times of the day sitting in the bedroom, the den and the kitchen, the center of the house. We spent alot of time in that room. From any window in the house you could see a garden, my grandmothers specialty.
Plants, flowers and gardens, oh and of course food, were central to our existence. It was a constant reminder, now in hindsight, that life was alive and living around us.
wonderful memories and visuals...
peace
jeremy
(did you buy that piece in Seattle?)
ok... i have been watching your blog for a long time now... and i love your pictures... you've inspired me! i was at the inlaws today... they have a large pond in front of their house and a duck that is nesting near it... i had my camera out snapping pix and thinking... what would carmi take a pix of!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteI love the vase, Carmi!
ReplyDeleteNext time bring one home....I know your wife would live it!!! :>)
Here from Michele.
ReplyDeleteLast weekend I went back to the town where I grew up, at least for six years. I found my first two schools and from the second was able to drive back to the small house we owned there, about 48 years ago. I remembered mud pies, apple trees, wading pools, baby Easter chicks, swing sets, bicycles, all sorts of little girl memories. Amazing.
I don't know when the Seattle thing with glass started. I suspect it might be the influence of Dale Chihuly. But it's everywhere. There's a museum of glass in Tacoma that I want to see. Maybe this summer sometime Chris and I will get a chance to go down.
ReplyDeleteYou know, I never thought about it, but the light in my grandparents' place was definitely memorable. I recall Sunday afternoons with all the family - six children and their spouses and 10 grandchildren plus Nana and Grampa - the sunlight filtering through the sheer curtains as it met the haze of cigarette smoke, the ever-present baseball game on the AM radio, we grandkids failing miserably at being seen and not heard! Beautiful shot of the vase, love the curve and the color. Here again from Michele's.
ReplyDeleteHow amazing that your prompt for 'Made of Glass' would entice me to share shots of the exact same glassblowing studio! There truly are no coincidences in this great world we inhabit. Glad I was able to share a few of my shots and bring back memories of days and years gone by.
ReplyDelete