Elaine Hyde

Elaine Hyde is an internationally known glass artist.  She began her career in 1969 at The Brooks Institute of Fine Arts in California.  After graduating with a BFA in 1972 she worked and trained at the Pilchuck Glass Center under the direction of Dale Chihuly.  At the time, the now-famous school was in the second year of operation.  In 1974 she opened her beachside studio in Santa Barbara. One of the very few women working in the male-dominated field of blown glass, she has attained a reputation for her exquisite perfume bottles and signature silver luster glassware.

Her work has been exhibited around the world and she has won may awards including first place awards at the La Quinta Art Festival, Sausalito Art Festival and The American Craft Exposition in Evanston, Ill. Her work has been published in The Corning Museum of Glass “New Glass Review” and she recently sold one of her pieces to President Bill Clinton for the glass collection of President and Mrs. Clinton.

ARTIST STATEMENT:

The current focus of my work is to combine blown glass vessels with precious metals and gemstones.  The glass base is made first then the tops are cast and fabricated to complement the piece and achieve a total sculptural design.  All glass and metal elements are created solely by myself.

The glass is blown, and sometimes iridized with an acid solution to create an opalescent sheen.  All of the metal is sterling silver and 14, 18, and 22 karat gold.  I utilize both wax casting and soldering techniques.  The teapots are small one-of-a-kind sculptural pieces.  Most of the objects are perfume bottles.  Some vessels contain wearable removable parts such as beads and pendants that slide off the tops of the bottles. These can be worn as jewelry. I blow all of the glass, fabricate all of the metal work, and set all of the stones.

Elaine Hyde
www.elainehyde.com

Elaine Hyde Gallery