On March 17th we locked the doors of our studio and headed out the door, telling all our staff that we'd be calling them back when the virus blew over and when we, as a collective, flattened the curve.
Our son was in town and while having a brief moment in the studio, the four of us jumped at the chance to blow some glass together. The coronavirus was on our minds and while doing research, we thought it was quite an interesting shape and actually rather beautiful.
Being the inspired artists we are, we all took a turn at creating the virus in glass. Then we posted the four varieties we made on Facebook just for fun. People started commenting, choosing their favorites and we decided to run with it. Pushing off negative comments and feedback, we knew giving back a portion of the sales was essential. Who knew what would happen to many other businesses in our neighborhood and surrounding cities during this pandemic?
If we could work in isolation in our studio, it was a way we could contribute, create some family time, and generate sales to help our private studio as well.
And so, the CoronaVirus in Glass Sculpture was born! Ever evolving, the first generation was just a solid version for a table top. Version 2.0 added a wooden base and some inscribing. Version 2.1 adds a graduation hat, and version 2.2 is a HERO award for people in our community.
Visit us on Facebook to follow the story, our family in action for the past eight weeks and counting. It started March 18th, 2020 and developed into us making live glassblowing videos during the pandemic. Whoever thought we'd grow into this?! To date, we've donated more that $4,000 to other small businesses and non-profits in the area and the giving continues.
