BENJAMIN COBB
“I love to work with my hands. I started working with glass as a teenager and have been at it ever since. Glass is a material that can be both transparent and opaque. I find this intriguing and aim to use these distinct properties when creating work. I have always been intrigued by science; this is where I pull my interest and inspiration. Natural forms, biology, and botany, from cellular forms to shapes and proportions of people; all these things inspire what I make. I focus on creating unique objects that are abstract, modern interpretations of natural forms.”
Through 25 years of working in glassblowing, Benjamin Cobb has honed his mastery of glass, traveled across the globe, and worked with hundreds of artists. An east-coast transplant, Cobb holds a BFA from the Rochester Institute of Technology and has been a demonstrating artist at glass studios as far afield as Sweden, the Czech Republic, Italy, and France. He’s taught at Penland School of Crafts, Pilchuck Glass School, and many other glass programs in the US. He’s a recognizable leader and voice in the glass community, and has contributed to the success of countless works of art.
In his own work, Cobb draws inspiration from the natural world, as well as scientific process. His work has been exhibited at Museum of Glass and the Museum of Northwest Art in La Conner, WA, and dozens of galleries across the country.
EDUCATION
2001 BFA in Glass and Glass Sculpture, Rochester Institute of Technology, School for American Crafts, Rochester, NY - Glass Forming and Sculpture with Robin Cass and Michael Taylor
WORK EXPERIENCE
2002- pres. Museum of Glass, Tacoma, WA, Lead Gaffer & Hot Shop Manager, public demonstrations, product design, and visiting artist support
2012 International Glass Symposium, Novy Bor, Czech Republic, demonstrating artist, artist support; The Glass Factory, Boda, Sweden, visiting artist
2008 Glass Art Society, Demonstration on Corning Mobile Hot Shop, Portland, OR
2006 Pilchuck Glass School, Stanwood, WA, Gaffer for artist in residence Trimpin
2003 Glass Art Society, Demonstration on Corning mobile stage Seattle, WA
2002 Bacchus Glass, Gaffer and assistant to Frank Cavaz Sonoma, CA; California Glass Exchange, Assistant to Robin Cass, demonstrator
2001 Glass Art Society Demonstration, Assistant to Robin Cass, hot glass demonstration Corning, NY
1999 Blenko Glass Factory, Assistant for Hank Murta Adams, hot glass casting Milton, West Virginia
1994 Thames Street Glass, Newport, RI
1999 Gaffing position for production line; responsible for charging, light up and shut down of studio
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
2011 10”x10”x10”, a small works show, Pittsburgh Glass Center, Pittsburgh, PA
2010 Fertile Ground, Museum of Glass, Tacoma, WA
2009 Blue Room, Nadania Idriss Gallery, Berlin, Germany
2007 Pilchuck Glass Exhibition: Each Year the Fire Burns Brighter Seattle, WA
2006 Pilchuck Exhibit, History of the World Gallery, Camano Island, WA
SOFA New York, New York, NY
2003 Artists of My Era, Area, Bubba Mavis, Seattle, WA
2001 Glass Art Society Student Exhibition, second prize, Corning, NY
James Renwick Alliance Annual Gala and Auction, Second Prize
2000 Haystack TA Exhibition, Haystack Benefit Auction, Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Deer Isle, ME
Outdoor Light Exhibition, The Museum of Luminous Phenomena, Alfred, NY
1999 Permanent installations commission, Bausch and Lomb, Rochester, NY
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
2013 Collaboration: Ideas to Execution, Pilchuck Glass School, instructor with Ann Wahlstrom
2012 From the Sketchbook to the Blowpipe, The Studio at Corning Museum of Glass
2011 Getting It Done, Pittsburgh Glass Center, one week workshop
2005 Pilchuck Glass School, Stanwood WA, Teaching Assistant for Robin Cass, glassblowing
2002 The Studio at Corning, Teaching Assistant for Robin Cass, beginning glassblowing
2000 Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Deer Isle, ME, Teaching Assistant for Robin Cass, beginnin glassblowing
PUBLICATIONS
2009 Kids Design Glass, (exhibition catalog) Museum of Glass, Tacoma, WA. Essayist.
2006 500 Glass Objects, By Maurine Littleton;
American Craft, portfolio section, Oct./Nov. 2006
25 Years of New Glass Review, Corning Museum of Glass, Corning, NY
500 Glass Objects: A Celebration of Functional & Sculptural Glass, Lark Books