How I found my calling in glass.
Art has always played a huge role in my life. Whether it was drawing, painting, clay... I loved it all. Though growing up I also loved playing sports so art was mainly on the back burner.
Once I went to college and realized that sports were becoming recreational rather than an actual career, I then decided to really focus on my art.
In 2012, I graduate with my Associates in Art from Lincoln College in Lincoln, IL. Afterwards, I then attended Illinois State University and was accepted into the Art Education Program. A week before classes started, I dropped the program. I had a gut feeling that this wasn't for me. So I then changed my major to drawing because it is my favorite thing to do when I have time.
During my second semester, I decided to take a glass blowing class as an elective. Little did I know this decision would change the rest of my life. There was something about this material that was so captivating. At its hottest temperature, it moved like honey but as soon as it cooled off it was just like a brick. It was so mesmerizing and resilient, I fell in love.
Halfway through the semester, I changed my major. I knew this was what I had to do. Since that point, I focused all of my energy into this art. In the winter of 2014, I graduated from Illinois State University with a Bachelors of Science in Studio Art with a Concentration in Glass. Currently, I work for J Draper Glass in Peoria, IL as an Assistant and Studio Coordinator.
