Who: Glassblower Marty White Elk Holmes
Earth, fire and even a bit of wind become a visual melody in Holmes’ hands. The glassblower imparts his spiritual beliefs in each creation, from small, ornamental orbs to cremation urns to yard-wide sculptures that turn plain walls into explosions of color. In his studio, tucked among the pines and crags of Glen Haven near Estes Park, he takes a blob of clear, molten glass the consistency of honey, adheres it to the end of a 5-foot-long pipe and begins a dance that soon becomes choreographed chaos. As the Dave Matthews Band lyrics “and the colors mix together” blasts from the speakers, Holmes begins his labor. Pipe and glass are alternately twirled, dipped in colored glass fragments, placed into a “glory hole” where the temperature rises to 2,400 degrees, puffed out with air, daubed with gold leaf, and shaped with wooden and metal tools. The result is pure magic.
How did your passion for glassblowing develop? I was a carpenter for many years until I blew out my knee playing basketball. Beginning in 1991, I apprenticed for four years with several glassblowers. I’ve always been an artist, always been interested in being human and what it means to be alive, and being able to communicate that. I started out with really small, really bad objects, but it got me out into the public, and I learned how to use color. I use the pieces to convey an image and emotion. My mission as an artist is to help bring people together. I want to convey that we’re all part of God’s creation, that we’re all sacred and precious, no matter what religion.
Where do you find inspiration? Yoga is a major cause in my life. It corresponds with glass in the way it moves and bends. I have a second-degree black belt in aikido, and that plays a big part too because it’s about blending with the ways the universe moves. Through looking at nature, whether a fish, a tree, a person or a face, there is a certain quality that we call “beauty.” It just so happens that this beauty can be expressed through numbers and proportions … the Fibonacci numbers. Through looking honestly and working with nature, I try to blend with this pattern in my work. I made “Dried Rose” after looking at a dried rose and its meaning of undying love. The Constellation series came from space images from the Hubble telescope, and the Healing Waters series was inspired by the ocean in the Caribbean. I’m inspired by individuals and people too and their ideas.
Do you have favorite pieces? There’s such an exuberance you feel with the big pieces. I want to do those while I am still young and can carry them. Wedding goblets are special because they feel very intimate.
How did you get the name White Elk? White Elk is a medicine name I was given during a Navajo ceremony. I’ve studied (American Indian culture) quite a bit and have been most interested in the Hopi. They gave me a great appreciation for the Earth, our mother, who nourishes all of us. I am indigenous, I am native to the whole Earth.
Do your finished pieces ever surprise you? You never have full control over the pieces. It’s a dance between you and the glass. My favorite part is the journey.
INTO THE CRUCIBLE
Holmes’ art now is carried in 800 galleries around the country, and much of it is commissioned. You can get a glimpse of the work at the studio adjacent to his home a few miles outside of Estes Park, where he lives with his wife, Jo, and son Elija. There he creates glass balls, perfume bottles, goblets, vases, urns, bowls, platters, light fixtures and sinks. For larger works, which can weigh as much as 100 pounds and must be constantly in motion during production, he gets help from four apprentices. Holmes’ sculptural works include weaving and twisting lengths of glass he describes as “breaths of life.”
Visit White Elk’s Visions in Glass website at whiteelks.com for information and a photo gallery, or call 970-577-1546.
