The furnace glassblowing
demonstrations and sale are carried out in a pavilion finished in
the English Tudor style with benches under a roof, shelves around
the back to hold glass (and living quarters upstairs.) Every year for more than a decade, Peter Andres & Chris Chapman have traveled from New York state to blow glass at the site they built at Scarborough Faire near Waxahachie, south of Dallas. Scarborough Faire is held weekends from late April, through May, into early June and includes a wide range of entertainments and food on a site of many acres. People come in Renaissance costume and see craft people at work, watch entertainers like jugglers and acrobats. Besides furnace glassblowing there are lampworkers, weavers, armor makers, potters, blacksmiths and many other craft presenters. Food ranges from smoked turkey legs to ostrich sausage, beer to frozen lemonade. I have visited several times, the most recent in April 1998. [in 2000, they stopped coming. And returned later.]
The furnace glassblowing
demonstrations and sale are carried out in a pavilion finished in
the English Tudor style with benches under a roof, shelves around
the back to hold glass (and living quarters upstairs.)
Peter is
working at the left in this view of the hot face across the heads
of the audience. Behind him is a barrel glory hole with a frax in
expansion steel door. The pipe heater is near his right elbow,
then are two glass furnaces, usually one clear and one color. You
can see some of his glass on the shelf above - more space with
glass is to his left. The tool chest, in the "Renaissance"
style, to the right has the marver laid on top. The annealer is
near his left knee and the bench just in front of the man in the
white shirt. Note the costumes on Peter and the man sitting to
the right.
This picture shows some of Peter's work
as well as the kind of display area he has created (and the
timber structure of the building and the stairs going up. Much of
the work is solid colors with high contrast lip wraps and handles.
Peter sells sets of goblets and pitchers as well as multicolored
works, ornaments, and paperweights.
Cross shot of hot face at
Scarborough Faire site. Glory hole to left, clear glass furnace,
colored glass crucible behind white round door. Annealer is under
the wood box lid at the bottom of the picture. The marver is on
the box at the right rear. Display space runs on the upper level
behind the furnaces, providing a good view of the floor, and
continues around to the left.