Meet Sandy Pendleton

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sandy Pendleton.

Sandy Pendleton, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I never dreamed I would be an artist. My earliest artistic experience was sitting will my sister at my grandmother’s kitchen table making holiday decorations. As a young woman, I backpacked across Europe and visited the great museums and cathedrals. I developed an appreciation for art and a fascination with the beauty of light through colored glass.

A lifetime later, my husband and I left our corporate careers and moved to the small town of Pinetop, AZ. I needed something to do. Without knowing what I was getting into, I took a class in a kiln-fired glass and fell in love with the medium. I found the transformation of glass by heat exciting. The centuries-old techniques were fascinating. I was hooked! I furthered my education with a variety of classes and workshops. Experimentation taught me volumes and helped me to create my own style.

I now spend half of my year working from my home studio in Cave Creek. One of the benefits is that I am closer to my sister, Nancy Pendleton, an accomplished artist. We collaborated on a series of mixed media pieces. I am proud to say that two of those pieces hang in the Compass Room of the Hyatt Hotel in downtown Phoenix.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I think the hardest part about being a glass artist is developing one’s own style. It is easy to repeat what others have done but to be creative and develop a body of work that viewers will recognize as yours is harder than I ever imagined.

We’d love to hear more about your art.
I make glass art objects. My work with glass is process-oriented and time-consuming. A single artwork may contain hundreds of small pieces of glass. Starting with colored glass, a design is created and fired in a kiln. Carefully controlling temperature over the course of several firings allows me to add texture and movement to the glass. Finally, the glass may be placed on a mold and gently heated to give the piece dimension.

I work intuitively. Sometimes I understand the inspiration for a piece long after the piece is made. Just as I love the interaction of light and glass, I also love the way the Arizona sun interacts with the landscape and the different moods that interaction creates. Capturing the shimmer of moonlight, the sparkle of light on water, the brilliant hues of the desert sunset, and the mystery of twilight are an ongoing focus of my work. If I have communicated my love of those moments through my work, I have succeeded.

What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
My favorite moment is when a client connects with a piece of my work. Their eyes light up and you know they love it. It speaks to them on some level. Artwork is something that can enrich a person’s life for many, many years. I am proud to be able to create something that adds beauty to life.

Contact Info:

• Address: Sandy Pendleton
• Website: sandypendletonglass.com
• Phone: 4807102859
• Email: sandy@sandypendletonglass.com

Image Credit:
Vanessa Cabrales, Morrie Farbman

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