August 4, 2008

By DAVE PAYNE, SR.

Parkersburg News and Sentinel


WILLIAMSTOWN — Several artists displayed their talents at the three-day Fenton Artistry Weekend event at Fenton Art Glass.

The event, which began Friday and ended Sunday in Williamstown, included factory tours, demonstrations by Fenton master craftsmen, signing events, seminars and Fenton artists creating hand-painted custom designs.

Among those Fenton artists painting unique designs on glassware was Judith Kay, better known by her "J.K. Spindler" signature that has appeared on numerous Fenton pieces for decades.

"I've always had a natural talent for it. How I got started was one day my mother and I came to the gift shop and looked around. She said 'You could do this.' I said 'I couldn't,'" she recalled.

But she could. She has been hand-painting Fenton glass since 1979.

"It's like any other job, it has its high points and low points, but there aren't many places to work where I can use my God-given talents. It's awesome," she said.

Non-Fenton craftsmanship was also well-represented. Besides the Fenton pieces, independent glass artisans were also present to show off their crafts and demonstrate how their products are made. Among them were John Winter and Rose Bettis of Clarksburg.

Winter was an apprentice of Robert Hamon, a legend among glass blowers, for two years. After his apprenticeship was completed, he began experimenting with bead-making, a discipline he has pursued to the highest level over the last 20 years.

He is a nationally-known instructor and is an adjunct professor at the Corcoran College of Art.

"Glass is so fascinating. There are so many ways of dealing with it. No matter how good you get, it makes you get better. There is this amazing palette of colors to work with," he said.

Like many American craftsmen, Winter has had difficulties with competition from China.

"They have some skilled copyists, but the work from over there has not been inventive. I've seen some of my designs copied in China. It pushes me to be better, to do things they don't know how to do yet," Winter said.

Winter and Bettis demonstrated their skills at bead-making, which is basically done by turning a rod over a torch flame and adding molten glass to it. Once the bead is finished - usually an intricate design of swirling colors - it is placed in an annealing oven to let it cool gradually. Otherwise, the glass can crack from internal stress, Bettis said.

"Glass is a liquid pretending to be a solid. If you don't eliminate that strain, sooner or later, it will break," she said.