For our first interview of the 2023 Delaware Fun-A-Day, we talk to glass artist and First State Craft Guild President Marcia Tauber about glass fusing, staying creative and productive through the pandemic, the First State Craft Guild, and art exhibit venues throughout New Castle County, DE. Thanks, Marcie!
We like to know how people are connected to Delaware - are you a resident, born and raised? What brought you to Delaware Fun-A-Day (DEFAD)?
I had lived all of my life in various parts of New York State before moving to Delaware in 1986. In 2020 I learned about DEFAD, and thought it would be a great way to motivate me to focus on my glass work every day for a month. It worked!
This is your 3rd time participating in DEFAD. As a glass artist, how do you take on a project like this and keep it manageable throughout the month? We’d love to hear about your process for Maker’s Month!
Though the objective of DEFAD is to create a piece each day during the month, as a fused glass artist, it is not effective to run the kiln daily with a very small quantity of glass in it. At the beginning of the month, I decide on my ‘theme’ (this year’s theme is ’In the Garden’), determine how each piece will be displayed (in 4 x 4 frames) and purchase the display components. Throughout the month I cut and fuse the glass, trying to run the kiln when it is relatively full. The finished pieces are assembled when the firing and other preparation work is complete.
In fact, your 1st time participating with DEFAD was in 2020. COVID first hit the U.S. right as the physical show that year was coming to an end and many of us donned our face masks for the first time when we came to re-collect our projects from that show. The 2nd time you participated was in 2021, which was our virtual year. This year things are relatively back to normal - however - like most working artists in our community - you’ve seen the landscape of exhibiting art change as a direct result of the pandemic. What were your experiences with exhibiting artwork over these past few years? Did you find creative ways to work around the challenges that COVID posed to still get your work out there?
For me, the biggest challenge that COVID presented was the absolute lack of creativity that I experienced, at least during the first year of the pandemic.The inability to travel to see family, the death of my mom, the isolation and the overall anxiety were crushing, and I really had no interest in creating. Fortunately, those feelings eventually subsided and I was able to find working with glass as a calming and positive factor in my life. I also learned enough from You Tube to dabble with watercolors, something I had always wanted to learn. My submissions for DEFAD 2021 were glass pieces and corresponding watercolor ones, and was the only display I had during the pandemic.
As a society we’re still navigating the devastation that COVID has foisted onto the world, and all the harm and heartache it has caused. Despite the damage, a few silver linings emerged when it came to the digital world and finding new ways to stay connected with one another. You uniquely had a former career in Information Technology. What is your perspective on the intersection between the digital world and art? Do you feel the arts community has evolved? And if so, was it for the better?
Sadly, I think the pandemic expedited an already existing transition from seeing and purchasing art in person, to seeing and purchasing art online. Anyone who has attended art shows in the past 20 years, can see the decrease in attendance and purchases since that time. This is likely to benefit those outlets who have a large online presence to the detriment of the small local artists.
Do you feel that virtual/digital art exhibits and shows are as impactful and profitable for artists?
As I discussed above, I feel that virtual/digital art exhibits are far less impactful and profitable for artists. Beyond the obvious issue that seeing art in person has an emotional impact that a digital display does not, digital displays require photographic equipment and skills, along with the ability to position the virtual display in a place so that the audience can find it. These present challenges to small artists.
In 2019 you founded and became the president of the First State Craft Guild, the Delaware chapter of the Pennsylvania Craft Guild. Tell us more about this non-profit and great group of artists and how folks can join.
The Guild is made up of a wonderful group of local crafters. Some are master artisans who make their living by making and selling their wares. Many others are hobbyists who enjoy discussing and learning crafts with like-minded folks.
Founded in Delaware in 2019, the FSCG is a non-profit organization which encourages and promotes the practice of fine craft and art, provides educational opportunities for the public through shows and fairs, and preserves and advances our creative culture through crafts. Lots of additional information can be found on our wonderful website (created by Grunge Muffin Designs!) at www.fscraftguild.org/about-the-guild. As a chapter of the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsman, membership is handled through their website (pacrafts.org)
Because of the timing, COVID delivered an initially crushing blow to the First State Craft Guild. The pandemic struck just as the group was forming and forced the members to adapt and find new avenues through which to stay connected. Can you tell us about how the guild continued to meet? What successes and/or challenges did you find in your leadership role while trying to navigate such a unique situation?
Since the First State Craft Guild was a one-year-old organization when the pandemic shut everything down, we are very pleased and proud of the fact that it is still an existing organization. During the pandemic, we continued to meet monthly, via Zoom. This allowed us to have virtual tours of our members' art spaces, virtual instructions in techniques provided by our members, and a virtual forum for discussing craft. While not all members were comfortable with a virtual meeting, or the logistics of using the tools, we persevered. The pandemic definitely put a damper on our goal of building membership. However, our monthly in-person meetings have resumed and we plan to increase our community visibility and membership in the upcoming months and years.
Time is so precious, especially when a person wears many hats and juggles being an artist, arts advocate, non-profit board member, spouse, etc. How do you manage it all while protecting your time to be able to marinate in your creative process and actually make new work? Do you find that your best ideas come while on-the-go?
I have the great fortune of being retired from my previous ‘day job’ in Information Technology, allowing me time to enjoy my glass work, my participation with the First State Craft Guild, and my favorite job of being Grammy to my two young grandchildren.
As the saying goes - inspiration, like lightning, can strike at any time. You once stated that you first found your inspiration for your glasswork while you were remodeling your kitchen… Tell us about it. Did you just go for it? And was this your first time working with glass?
Many years ago, I purchased the house we currently live in, and the kitchen was in desperate need of remodeling. The money ran out before I was able to put a stained glass panel in one of the cabinets. After a year or two where the frame remained open (allowing the cat access to the inside of the cabinet!), my husband suggested I take a stained glass class and make a panel myself. As a result, a lovely stained glass panel eventually filled the frame in that cabinet. I fell in love with the medium of glass, and never looked back.
How have you evolved your skill and craftsmanship over the years when it comes to working with glass? What tools did you use or avenues did you take to strengthen your abilities or expand/broaden the scope of your work? For example, it looks like you also learned metal-smithing and electrical work to bolster your projects.
Once I started working with glass, I discovered glass fusing, where glass is combined and shaped at high temperature in a kiln. I took a local fusing class and was hooked. My husband, who is my biggest supporter, along with several other family members, bought me a kiln as a surprise birthday present. Over the years, I added a wet tile saw, a flat lap grinder, a glass ring saw and a sandblaster to my tool set. I’ve continued to take glass classes, both online and in person over the years, to expand my techniques. I have also taken a few welding classes so that I could incorporate metal into my work.
Glasswork, particularly stained glass, can find its way into so many different styles of home decor. Do you find that you gravitate toward a particular styling or influence in your work? For example, new-age versus modern versus victorian. Where do you envision your work ultimately “ending up” as you create it?
Stained glass does tend towards a more traditional style, which is perhaps why I’ve concentrated more on fused glass which tends towards a more contemporary style. Ten or fifteen years ago, I could not have predicted what my work would look like today, so I really don’t have a vision of where I may go in the future. I find I focus on one technique or style for a period of time, then move to a different one, as it captures my interest.
Thinking again back to 2019 you created these beautiful mounted glass pieces that were commissioned to be used as the Governor’s Awards which were then presented during the biennial Delaware Arts Summit in celebration of the 30th Year Anniversary for the Delaware Division of the Arts. Tell us more about this project. Have you had other projects quite like it before or since then?
I was honored to be asked and very much enjoyed making those pieces for the Governor’s Awards. I had displayed my deep bowls, or Calderas as I call them, at the Division of the Arts Mezzanine Gallery, so I chose that style for the awards. Each Caldera was made by taking a round piece of clear glass, and covering it with hand-pulled threads of glass, which were kiln-fired into place. Then the piece was slumped (kiln-shaped) into three successively deeper ceramic molds until it achieved the desired shape. (Photo below by Joe delTufo, Moonloop Photography).
I have been honored to have also worked with the Delaware Small Business Administration for the past 10 years, making between 9 and 20 awards for each year's winners.
Your work has been on display throughout Delaware - at the Wilmington Siegel JCC Art Space, the Delaware Division of the Arts Mezzanine Gallery, the Delaware Archives, etc. What can you tell us about these spaces (or other spaces you’ve discovered)?
In addition to those you’ve listed, my work was displayed at Buena Vista Conference Center. Each of these places provides a wonderful venue for local artists to display their work, allowing it to be seen by varied audiences.
DEFAD attracts creative folks and makers across the spectrum in terms of age, skill, and art medium. As someone who is so active in the arts community, particularly here in Delaware, where should folks turn, other than DEFAD, to get started? What advice can you impart for those who seek to aspire to your level of skill and showmanship? Any steps that you would recommend for folks to “skip” in the name of advancement?
I think a good place to start is the Delaware Division of the Arts. They provide grants to artists and art organizations, along with assistance and information. I’ve been a recipient of these grants which have allowed me to take classes to learn new skills. Of course the First State Craft Guild is a great place to meet other artists and get information and lots of support.
Where can people see or purchase your work?
My work will, of course, be on display at the upcoming DEFAD display in November. For the holidays, I will be participating in the new Brandywine Holiday Festival of the Arts at the Chase Center on the Riverfront December 16-17. And I display annually at the Hockessin Art Show, Feb 23-25, 2024 at Hockessin Memorial Hall.