
It needed to happen because it’s a pillar of the space. It’s like Apple being involved in a technology show. Nick: “It’s the most natural fit possible. What are your thoughts about the Museum’s participation in Blown Away? All photos by David Leyes for marblemedia. There are so many people who didn’t know you could take a lesson at a hot shop, or that you could access a hot shop-or even what a hot shop was! Now glass is a medium that’s probably akin to clay, not in terms of the difficulty of working with it, but in people’s understanding of it.”Ī contestant on Blown Away Season 2. Nick: “Blown Away has made glass accessible to people outside the glass world. It has always been this extreme sport, but only a few people knew about it. We’ve arrived at a moment-and Blown Away has done such a great service-where glass has entered our popular consciousness. Rob: “Glass is really finding its moment right now. Anything that shows us doing what we do best (and what we love!) is a welcome and overdue respite, and hopefully, also a harbinger of something approaching normalcy returning again soon.” Season 2 will only help to build more awareness. I think we all knew that that interest was out there, but the reach of a show like this is so much broader. That might not be knowledge that they need every day, but it’s so encouraging that people from beyond the field are as captivated by the process as those of us in the thick of it. I’ve been amazed by how many people now know what reticello is, for instance. Kathy: “Season 1 completely expanded glassmaking’s profile in the public consciousness. What has Blown Away done for the art of glassmaking? Katherine and Nick with returning contestant Alexander Rosenberg (middle) from Blown Away Season 1. In some ways, I think the contestants were hyper-aware of their predecessors and maybe wanted to outdo or outshine them while also competing with each other.” The new contestants saw what the impact was on the careers of Season 1 contestants (as did I!) and knew that this would be a game-changer. Obviously, there were different personalities and different creative challenges, but it seemed like the stakes were higher. Kathy: “This role is a familiar one for me as an art professor, but I definitely felt like I understood the rhythm of filming better.

I got to pay more attention to the glass and less to the production aspect of it.” I understand why the artists can go so in-depth with this material-there are so many possibilities.

I thought it was all about bowls and glasses, but now I’ve seen people work with it and I understand the intricacies of glass art. Nick: “As someone who knew nothing about glass before Blown Away, glass is so much more versatile than I originally expected.
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So now, for the Blown Away series to capture that magic, to bottle that energy, and to share it with the world through Netflix-it’s really unbelievable, and it was a joyful honor for me to be part of it.” We knew glass was inherently exciting and we wanted to bring that to our visitors.

“When we first launched our demo at the Museum, we called it the ‘Hot Glass Show,’ and put our makers on a stage.
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Rob: “It feels like I’ve come full circle,” said Rob, who developed the Museum’s hot glass programming. How was your experience on the show during Season 2? Rob (left), Katherine, and Nick on the set of Blown Away Season 2. Currently, she lives in Los Angeles where she is a professor of art at California State University, San Bernardino. Nick is a top influencer on TikTok and can be found Gray, Resident Evaluator on Blown Away: A renowned glass artist, Katherine’s work in glass has been featured across the U.S.

A science influencer and producer, he is best known for his popular YouTube science show, Nickipedia. Nick Uhas, Host of Blown Away: Nick Uhas launched his media career at age 17. In addition to launching the hot glass demonstrations 20 years ago, Rob also developed all associated hot glass outreach from the Hot Glass Roadshow to GlassLab and GlassBarge. Director at CMoG, and Guest Judge for the Final Episode: Rob retired from the Museum in October 2020, leaving behind a lasting legacy that-much like Blown Away itself-is a “love letter to glass.” His ambitious projects literally transformed the Museum, as he was heavily involved with the last two expansion projects to add the Innovation Center (2001) and the Contemporary Art + Design Wing (2015).
