How to turn glass into gold: Lessons from a Netflix series

One day you’re blowing glass, minding your own business, and then Netflix makes you a local celebrity. Essentially, that’s what happened to Deborah Czeresko and the artists from “Blown Away.” But that was months ago: once the glass-making competition ended, all that attention died down. What do you do while you’re still hot, so to speak?

Get weird with it on an epic scale.

Deborah Czeresko’s “meat chandelier”, behind her & mentor William Gudenrath

Think about the idea you just knew wouldn’t fly, the stuff you thought was too weird for anyone but you and a couple other people. Do that. When else are you going to make a meat chandelier out of glass AND mock the “sausage fest” of a typical glassblowing studio?

Use the good stuff; hire great people.

For the glass artists, the Good Stuff would mean renting workspace, as well as hiring the assistants who are crucial to making their work. For me, it might be taking a master class at the Pratt Fine Art Center, plus hiring a caregiver to watch my youngest while I’m there. Or maybe I’d take the caregiver and my family with me to Miami while I network with galleries at Art Basel. Why not?

Believe (some of) the hype about yourself.

Sometimes the payoff looks like more gold in your bank account. But it could also be something more intangible, like support from new fans. Seattle contestant Janusz Pozniak said in a recent interview, “… Even if they aren’t in a position to financially support my work by purchasing a piece, they have encouraged me to continue doing what I love and not doubt myself.” That’s the kind of support creative people need when inspiration (or cash) is in short supply.