1. You’ve probably never done anything like it.
Glass blowing is a hands-on experience unlike any other. In the Holdman Studios state-of-the-art facility at Thanksgiving Point, students work alongside professionals to create beautiful stained glass, glass flowers, or more complex objects like paper weights, bowls and platters. How many of your friends can say they’ve done that?
“It’s not something you see everywhere,” said Amilia Smith, Holdman Studios’ office manager. “It’s kind of exciting to go in and work with hot glass. The artists make it look so easy, then you go in and it takes more strength than you expected. It gives you more of an appreciation for this kind of art.”
2. The studio is run by world-famous glass artist Tom Holdman.
Holdman’s works of art, some worth up to a million dollars, are displayed worldwide in 20 LDS temples, local spots like the Community Presbyterian Church, the Orem and Utah Valley University libraries, Brigham Young University and the Scera Theatre. The staff at Holdman Studios are experienced artists who love sharing their craft.
3. You get to play with glass.
We’ve always been told glass is delicate and dangerous. But at Holdman Studios, you get to use anywhere from two to 10 tools to stretch, flatten and mold the hot glass.
4. You have options.
You don’t have to have any experience working with glass to try your hand at it. The artists at Holdman Studios have helped students from 7 to 95 years old. Choose from the introductory course where you’ll create your own glass flower (it takes about 15 minutes), the 3-hour stained glass class or the more advanced experience with a 4-hour course in which you’ll participate in the more hands-on parts of creating glass flowers, vases, bowls or platters.
5. You’ll work with a furnace as hot as a Hawaiian volcano.
Holdman Studios’ “hot shop” is equipped with two furnaces — a crucible, which reaches a scorching 2,100 degrees Fahrenheit in order to keep the glass in a liquid state, and a glory hole, which heats up to 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit and is used to reheat the glass.
“It’s actually a very dangerous process,” said Logan Hendricks, gallery director at Holdman Studios. “If you’re not doing it correctly, you have the potential to burn yourself quite easily.”
But don’t worry. The professionals at Holdman Studios won’t let you try anything you’re not ready for. In the introductory classes, they take care of all the life-threatening parts of the job for you.
If you go:
Glass flower making
Wednesday, Friday and Saturday between 10 am and 5:30 pm
Each class is 20 minutes long
1 flower for $30, 3 flowers are $75 (includes materials)
Stained glass class
Wednesdays and Thursdays
5 classes for $185 (includes materials)
Glass blowing class
2nd Saturday of each month
9 am – 1 pm or 1:30 pm – 5 pm
2 students per class
$300 per student
Children’s art classes
Saturdays
$30 (prices vary according to monthly project)
4- to 7-year olds: 11 am – 12:15 pm
8- to 12-year olds: 12:30 pm to 2 pm
To reserve your spot, call (801) 766-1111.