What is Lampwork? Lampworking is an form of glasswork which uses a torch to melt rods of glass. The melted glass is manipulated and formed with tools and hand movements to create objects such as jewelry, figurines, paperweights, etc. Lampwork is also used to create scientific instruments, often for chemistry work. Other names for lampworking include flameworking or torchwork.
Lampwork derives its name from the ancient practice of melting glass in the flame of an oil lamp with air blown through a tube. Today most artists use a propane or natural gas torch with oxygen from bottles or a concentrator. Modern fuels combined with a higher concentration of oxygen have enabled more advanced techniques and have allowed artists to take the art form to new levels.
Historically lampworking has been very much a cottage industry with individual artists working from their homes doing piecework. Today lampworking is still true to its roots with thousands of artists working in small studios, often in their homes, creating beautiful pieces of artwork.
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