Tina Dobbins

Tina Dobbins

Tina says...

"I am Tina Dobbins, English but living in Spain at present.
  
I have worked in various art-forms,but a couple of years ago,I became interested in kiln-fired glass,specifically Dichroic glass............which is just magical.
 
A friend (just returned from Australia),showed me a piece and of PMC....and explained it could be kiln-fired and turned into fine silver....I was instantly hooked!
 
I loved the freedom of the clay.....the free form,silver without the boundaries of metal !
 
As a birthday gift from the family,I was entered into an Instructors Certification course,and have now been able to bring this fantastic medium to a quite a number of ex-pats and retirees,living here in Spain,to enjoy.
 
These are just a few of the pieces I have made,experimenting with PMC & Dichroic glass,fired together.
There have been a few disasters along the way........fused Dichroic glass being such an unpredictable medium!

Entry 1. Dichroic & PMC,Necklet Earrings & Ring.  This is  twice fired  Dichro glass,which I kiln fired with textured PMC 3 +added syringe work...the trick in firing together is to enclose the piece,whilst ensuring the glass does not crack when the PMC shrinks.Timing is everything!

 

Entry 2.  A simple freeform PMC pendant embellished with some pre-fired syringe work and an embedded kiln fired Dichro stone.

Entry 3. A dramatic piece of pre-fired Dichro glass,kiln-fired again with a freeform surround of PMC+. 

Entry 4. Several times fired dichroic layers,ground to form a circle and wrapped with a snake of PMC 3...finished with a freeform bail and syringe work.(The most difficult thing is to ensure the encirling rope of PMC is just the right size...too small,the glass will crack...too large and the glass will fall out.) 

Entry 5. Perhaps most challenging of all was this Bracelet...I shaped PMC ropes into a design to encompass a piece of Dichroic glass I had previously fired.I fired the fused glass & PMC together over kiln posts wrapped in ceramic firing paper to get just the right amount of curve on the silver & glass to sit comfortably on the wrist.(I added chain & links to fasten.)