Father and son fire up glass works in Springfield, MO

MADELINEDEJOURNETTadvancensc@sbcglobal.net The showroom at Springfield Hot Glass on Campbell Street in Springfield, MO, provides a glimpse into the many facets of the glass-blowing trade.

On the Road

Terry Bloodworth has spent 38 years of his life working with hot glass. In the demonstration method which he learned working twenty years at Silver Dollar City in the Ozarks, Bloodworth explains the process, as he and his son Gabe create a beautiful glass art object in their shop at 314 S. Campbell, Springfield, MO.

Terry Bloodworth refers to the process as "off hand" glass blowing, which differs from the molded glass done by Fenton.

MADELINEDEJOURNETTadvancensc@sbcglobal.net This spectacular chandelier separates the showroom from the workroom.

On Thursday, April 9, 2015, Terry and Gabe are creating a "Murrin piece," which involves putting an overlay design on the basic glass piece.

"Gabe is 'leading' on this piece," Bloodworth explains. "He's been blowing glass for fifteen years. We've been here at this shop in Springfield for 12 years. One of the reasons we like it here is that the utilities are inexpensive. Our friends can't believe that our utilities run less than $900 a month."

The Bloodworths run several kilns, a pipe warmer, a "day tank," which holds the days' supply of molten glass, and a "lehr," which is similar to a kiln--except that it's hot all the time.

MADELINEDEJOURNETTadvancensc@sbcglobal.net Terry Bloodworth and his son Gabe work together to bring a piece of art work to fruition.

The work requires a great deal of time, concentration, and strength, as the molten glass must be shaped and returned to the hot fires of the lehr, over and over.

The two men work together in tandem, with Gabe blowing in measured breaths through the hollow rod and Terry operating blocks of cherry wood to shape the glowing piece of glass from the outside.

As the glass cools, the color changes from glowing red to the blue and white it will be when finished. The shape stretches out from round to elliptical, an oval.

MADELINEDEJOURNETTadvancensc@sbcglobal.net Gabe Bloodworth blows air through a tube to expaqnd the glass, while simultaneously using a blow torch to keep the glass hot. Terry Bloodworth works with another piece of glass in the lehr.

"This piece will not be designed to hold liquid like a vase," says Gabe Bloodworth. "It will be an art piece."

The city of Springfield is in the midst of a resurgence, so the older sections of the city are being remodeled. Springfield Hot Glass is located in one of the historic buildings on south Campbell Street, not far from the old square.

Springfield Hot Glass is also involved in the renovation of another historic building.

"We're making the 80-plus hand blown light fixtures for the Vandivort Hotel," adds Terry Bloodworth.

The 50-room boutique hotel is being created in the old Masonic building on Walnut Street, built in 1906. A look at the hotel's Facebook page reveals that the glass light fixtures are modeled after the V design of the hotel logo, echoing the "plum bob" shape associated with masons.

A look through the showroom at Springfield Hot Glass reveals a multitude of colorful glass pieces, from bottle stoppers to fluted bowls to the larger art objects, such as the one Gabe and Terry were making, when this reporter walked through the front door.

An hour spent with these glass artists is an education in an ancient skill that is centuries old.