Studio Imagery from Siemon & Salazar
I don’t mean to come across as somebody who’s always complaining, or a snob for that matter, but I often find myself disappointed when searching the shelves of mainstream shops. I appreciate the concept of appealing to a larger market but in doing so it feels like we are losing touch with objects that have been made to last, made with a real love and attention to detail. I like to be able to see the craftsmanship and hard graft within the objects I own, which is why I love coming across independents like Caleb Siemon and Carmen Salazar who own a small glassmaking factory in Santa Ana, California. I’ve raided their website today as a means of a visual introduction to the work they undertake, which I’m sure lots of you creative individuals will admire.
I did drop the studio an email a short while ago in an attempt to get some of these split screen images separately, but I got rather impatient in the end (I couldn’t wait to share these) so I could be updating these in the next couple of days with further shots. Although what we have here is only small snippets of everyday studio processes I think they go a long way in conveying the talent and skill set of the pair. The two pieces being constructed in the second and sixth images for example look every bit the creation of a masterpiece. Here we see Caleb who founded the original studio in the late 90’s, with the help of a group of friends and his wife to be Camen he transformed an old auto body shop into an artists enclave.
Unlike Caleb who had been working in the same field since apprenticing with Italy’s renowned master glass worker Pino Signoretto. Carmen has dabbled in many creative fields including sculpting, metalwork, botany, and architecture which she achieved a masters in at the Southern California Institute during 2001. Initially she thought she was just going to spend a month in Orange County helping Caleb with the shop but fate had other ideas. She brings the element of experimentation to table in the work the studio undertakes with Caleb offering the experience that together makes them so successful. Hopefully this little nod of appreciation I’ve put together also doubles as an introduction to the products they create, which I’d really recommend viewing over on their webpage. I’ve always wanted to give glass making a go as it looks like such a fascinating and exhilarating process, seeing this has given me a bit of impetus to have a search around and see what I can find in my local area. I’d like to think a few of you might do the same too – Enjoy!