INNISFAIL – When Wilma Watson retired seven years ago after serving the human resources profession for 40 years her sister Allison declared she had to do something different.
In 2017 she went back to college in Red Deer. It was there she learned the exhilarating, albeit challenging, techniques of lampworking; the creation of art through glass, a type of glasswork in which a torch or lamp is used to melt the glass.
“I just really fell in love with the process and the ability to design and make things. I started looking into how I can make this happen for myself, and how I could set up a studio,” said Watson, who then found herself navigating through all the regulatory conditions with the local fire department and the Town of Innisfail.
“After that I got the opportunity to set up a small studio in my basement,” she added. “I've been playing and designing and building, and it's been just an awesome opportunity.”
Since then she has also had the opportunity to travel and take additional lampworking courses in Italy, Thailand and the Netherlands.
Her art is one that requires finely tuned skill, which is acquired through committed dedication for ongoing knowledge, training and experience.
“My torch goes up to about 1,300 degrees fahrenheit, and that melts the glass,” said Watson. “And what I have is glass rods that actually look like really long pencils, and those are all different colours and shapes.
“And from there it’s just how you manipulate the glass, and how you design whatever it is you are working on.”
What she has done as an artist is produce jaw-dropping creations that have not only impressed many art lovers at local and regional levels but across international borders.
This year, Watson, now 64 and the current president of the Innisfail Art Club, is one of four artists worldwide to receive a scholarship of about $2,500 to attend the International Society of Glass Beadmakers (ISGB) conference in Omaha, Neb. from Oct. 26 to 29.
The ISGB promotes itself as the leading organization for the promotion, education, and appreciation of the art of glass beadmaking for wearable, sculptural, and functional art.
The international society is calling its conference “The Gathering”, a time for beadmakers around the world to get “fired up”, and to “unite, share and inspire.
“It's just talking about moving lampworking forward and continuing to build the art form,” said Watson, who will return home with the opportunity to pass on new ideas and techniques to local beadmakers.
In fact, she has already started teaching with one up and coming local beadmaker.
“It's all one-on-one teaching,” said Watson. “Hopefully in the future we can somehow figure out how we can set up a studio in Innisfail and perhaps have part of the art club to be able to teach to larger classes.
“The ultimate goal is to attempt to get a community art centre that does everything; pottery, lampworking and woodworking and music,” said Watson. “It’s about just bringing it all together into one centre so that you've got a place that everyone can come and enjoy their particular art form.”
