by Jo Barnes | photo by Leah Gray –
Breaking glass. For most of us, we think of a cacophonous, destructive sound that makes us cringe. But for one local artist, the sound is quiet, satisfying, and the basis of her creativity.
Sidney glass artist, Donna Marie Pitcher, creates fused and stained glass art, a beautiful art medium that requires skillfully breaking glass into pieces. “There’s a certain noise you hear when you cut glass. I didn’t expect this sound,” shares Donna Marie. “It’s a lovely grinding sound followed by a quiet snap when it breaks.”
For her, creating works of art, which include hangings and lanterns from glass, is immensely satisfying. “I love to explore nature and transform what I see into glass. It brings me joy,” she explains. “It’s something I do to enrich my soul.”
Since childhood, Donna Marie has enjoyed being creative in a variety of ways including knitting, ceramics and painting. However, a course in glass art completely captivated her interest. “I was in Arizona and took a beginners class with glass artist Karen Henderson,” she shares. “I discovered that I can choose the colour of glass, cut it to a shape that I want and then break it. The possibilities are endless.”
Since that day, Donna Marie has been spending her time doing stained and fused glass. It is an art form that takes practise, skill and focus. “I was nervous in that first workshop,” she relates. “If the angle is too sharp, the glass can crack. You have to be careful. I try not to cut myself.”
Initially, she focused on the art of stained glass which involves a method first developed by famous artist, Louis Comfort Tiffany, whereby pieces of glass are wrapped in copper foil, soldered and joined using lead. Donna Marie learned and perfected new skills like cutting and grinding and how to handle new equipment like diamond bits and various types of pliers.
“You have to make sure the copper foil totally adheres to the glass before you begin to solder it,” comments Donna Marie. “It takes a lot of practise.”
Always wanting to develop her skills and try new activities, she began to explore a different kind of process called fused glass whereby pieces of glass are melted or “fused” together at a very high temperature in a kiln.
“Certain types of glass melt at certain temperatures. If you use the wrong temperature, glass can crack,” says Donna Marie. “Results depend on how fast you ramp up the temperature and how fast you anneal it, or cool it down.”
The process requires a lot of planning and research, both which enable Donna Marie to grow in her creative journey. “The fusing process takes longer. It involves research and studying methods,” she says. “I really like exercising my mind. I want to learn more and go out of my comfort zone.”
Donna Marie shares her art creations through Facebook marketplace and local farmers’ markets. She’s also actively involved with local arts groups. “I joined ArtSea about five years ago, which provided forums to talk with people and insights into selling glass,” she relates. “I joined Saanich Peninsula Arts & Crafts Society (SPAC) in 2021. This introduced me to a totally different network and so many different mediums of art.”
As a new venture for her, Donna Marie decided to enter an art show recently where she received recognition and feedback from jurors praising her ability to tell a good story through her work. “This past spring was my first time I entered a show and I received two juried awards,” she says. One of them was the Juror’s Choice Award for my stained glass. The piece was a picture of a puffin overlooking a cliff. It represents where I was born – Newfoundland.”
She is honoured to receive this kind of accolade, but her real satisfaction comes more from within as she says: “I do it for myself; it brings me joy and brings others joy.”
During the pandemic, Donna Marie created brightly-coloured birds and fish and displayed them on the fence posts outside her Sidney home just to brighten up her yard and for her own pleasure. “I live on a corner. You know it’s my house by these glass items. They bring a smile to people’s faces,” she shares.
Sometimes, creating glass for others can be a deeply moving experience for her. “A customer shared that her husband had passed away. She asked if I could make a stained glass damselfly mobile. The damselfly was a favourite of this customer’s late husband.” says Donna Marie. “It gave me such joy working on this project. I get goosebumps just thinking about it.”
Donna Marie’s glass creations catch the light. Through them you see colours and images that reflect the world around us, and it all begins with a lovely sound of breaking glass.
Visit www.facebook.com/donnamariesglassycrafts for more information.
