Willow Glen Resident

Cover Story

Photograph by Vicki Thompson

Detail Work: Kevin Chong, who specializes is in neon and blown glass, uses tweezers to pull open the neck of a vase. He is considered a 'guru of glass' by local artisans.

Glass Act

Willow Glen glassblower work is magical

By Mary Gottschalk

The grimy windows and industrial door of Kevin Chong's Silica Valley Glass Studio in the River Street Historic District near HP Pavilion is uninviting from the street.

Step inside, however, and it's a sorcerer's cave, complete with a roaring, open furnace of fire, medieval-looking tools and shelves filled with jewel-toned blown-glass vases, bowls, goblets, ornaments and other objects.

Here Chong of Willow Glen is the master sorcerer, firing up his furnace, gathering molten glass on the end of a blowpipe, blowing and creating art glass almost magically.

Although he has been blowing glass for only a decade, Chong's talent is recognized and praised by other Bay Area glass artisans.

Tom Stanton, founder of Holy City Art Glass and a man Chong calls the guru of glass, says, "Kevin is one of the better and more unusual glass artists around."

Stanton met Chong at a party five or six years ago, a month later he had the opportunity to watch him work.

"He truly is one of the greatest," Stanton says.

Stanton put his money behind his opinion, saying, "Kevin is one of the few artists whose pieces I've bought. I have really high aesthetics. I bought one I couldn't pass up. In my private collection, I have maybe four or five artists and Kevin is one."

Chong's work is familiar to patrons of the Downtown Farmers Market at San Pedro Square where he sells his work each Friday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

It was here that Al Luedke first bought pieces from Chong.

Luedke says he initially bought 10 of Chong's vases, primarily for gifts.

"I've seen like pieces in galleries," Luedke says. "His are gallery quality at a fraction of the price.

"Everyone I gave them to loves them, and they show them prominently in their homes."

Luedke says he recently purchased four more vases and now has six he's keeping for himself.

"Kevin has a very unique combination of colors in his works that you don't see very often," Luedke says. "It's his colors that really attract me."

Baker or artist

Now 42, Chong's interest in glass dates back 27 years to high school, when he first tried his hand at stained glass.

"It was an art credit in high school," Chong says, "and I took it because I like art."

Soon after, Chong moved from stained glass to neon art and also started working as a baker.

"When I was 22, I had to decide between culinary school or neon school, so I gave up the baking world," he says.

Chong studied at the Neon Art School in Portland, where he was invited to teach after completing his studies.

In 1987, Chong's neon art skills took him first to Cameron Park, near Sacramento, and then to a shop in Campbell.

In 1991, he opened up his own neon studio, across from Henry's Hi-Life and next door to the Downtown Alano Club at
99-B N. Almaden Blvd.

"Almost everybody in the Bay Area sees my neon work every day," Chong says.

Clients include the HP Pavilion, The Tech Museum, the Sainte Claire Hotel, Microsoft, Subway, Sharper Image and Men's Wearhouse.

On a visit to Newport, R.I., in the early 1990s, Chong was walking down a street when he noticed the door to a glassblower's studio was open.

"I could see him working. I stood and watched for four hours," he says.

Six weeks later, Chong was back in Newport. He returned to the same studio to watch again.

"That's what first got me interested in pursuing another career still somewhat related to glass. It was the next step," he says.

A cautious man, Chong didn't plunge into glassblowing.

"I was and still am happy doing neon, but it's not satisfying in other ways," he says.

"I was looking for something to get into, and glassblowing really fascinated me. I spent quite a few years gathering information.

"Everywhere I'd go, I'd look for glass- blowing studios and galleries."

In 1995, Chong went to a lecture by Dale Chihuly, the famous Seattle-based glass artist.

At the time, Chihuly was an artist in residence at San José State University. During his lecture, Chihuly he discussed the school's glass program.

Chong says after hearing Chihuly, he took his first glassblowing class at SJSU.

Mary White, co-head of the glass department at The Crucible in Oakland, recalls having Chong as a student at SJSU.

"Kevin came from a technically adept background," White says. "When students bring with them some previous knowledge of another field, I always encourage them to try and bring that into their work. It's important for them to honor themselves as an artist."

White says it's important to integrate one's style into the work.

"Being an artist, you are who you are," she says, "and you bring with you all your experience."

White says Chong "was immediately interested in the Italian techniques."

When White brought Venetian master glassblower Lino Tagliapietra as an artist in residence to SJSU in 1997, she wasn't surprised Chong stepped forward to offer his help.

Tagliapietra is considered to be the greatest glass artisan working today, and Chong was excited to see him work.

"Mary White had me make some tools and equipment for Lino, so my first introduction was discussing what equipment he wanted me to make for his week of demonstrations," Chong says.

Since then, Chong has observed Tagliapietra at work when he comes to the United States. Most recently, he traveled to the Corning Museum of Glass in Corning, N.Y., in November to spend five days with the Italian master.

Although Chong has also taken classes with other Italian artists, including Pino Signoretto and Elio Quarisa, he has not traveled to Italy.

"Lino has invited me to Italy, and I've had other opportunities, but it's hard for me to shut down my neon business to go away. I have two businesses," Chong says.

White says she continues to be grateful that, even after Chong started his own studio, he has kept White up to date on the innovative artists he has studied with on the East Coast.

"He also introduced me to Treg Silkwood, and Kevin was partially responsible for encouraging him to come out here," White says.

On a return trip to Newport two years ago, Chong stopped by Thames Glass and introduced himself to Matthew Buechner.

"I told him he was responsible for me getting into glass, and he thought that was pretty neat," Chong says.

He also learned Buechner's father had been director of the Corning Museum of Glass and later president of Steuben Glass.

In 2003, Chong combined his glassblowing and neon glass businesses under the name Silica Valley Glass Studio.

When Chong gives the name of his studio, many people immediately hear Silicon Valley instead of Silica Valley, which makes him smile.

"Silica is one of the ingredients of glass," he says.

Chong says his business is evenly divided, but at different times of the year he devotes more time to one over the other.

Lately, glassblowing is dominating because of seasonal sales.

Chong sold 250 of his glass pumpkins over a two-day period at the annual Great Glass Pumpkin Patch at the Palo Alto Cultural Center in October. He estimates he's sold another 100 of the $85 pumpkins at the farmers market.

Lately his focus has been on glass ornaments for the holidays, in ball and tear drop shapes.

Unlike many hand-blown glass ornaments, which tend to be heavy, Chong's are lightweight and delicate.

He's also been producing vases, which are popular gifts year-round.

Looking ahead, Chong says he wants to expand his gallery business. Currently, his work is carried at The Minds Eye in historic downtown Campbell, but he would like to take it a step further. Chong would like to see the area around his studio become an artists' enclave.

"This neighborhood is really, really good for studios. We're next to a park and restaurants," Chong says.

Kevin Chong studio, Silica Valley Glass Studio, 99-B N. Almaden Blvd., is open by appointment, call 408.995.6366 or email
silicavalley@aol.com.