Side Roads
discoveries Off the beaten Path
When Tom Dimond
was growing up in the
Midwest, he marveled
at the beauty of frozen
lakes and the plants
and creatures displayed
below the icy sheet.
As a kid, he also was
fascinated with the colors and designs within
glass marbles. While
collecting them, he
began to wonder about
the infinite artistic possibilities through a clear
veil of transparency.
Today, Tom operates
a small glass studio
on his hillside property in Cove, Oregon.
Dimond Art Glass has been open since
2004, and holds several exhibits throughout the year.
Tom’s most recent glass series, “Root
and Branch,” was released in March 2011
with the help of his studio partner, Kevin
Boylan. The series incorporates the idea
of a two-sided form, and represents the
development and duality of life.
Tom started his career as an art-
ist almost 50 years ago, but he was
mostly involved in ceramics. He did his
undergraduate work at the University
of Wisconsin-Whitewater, and gradu-
ated with a degree in art. When an
instructor introduced him to con-
temporary glassblowing, Tom was
hooked.
“We were looking at glass as a
material for personal expression and
searching for forms you couldn’t get
in any other mediums,” he explains.
“You can’t get it in ceramics, bronze
or casting iron. Glass is real particular,
and it offers another dimension with its
transparency.”
In 1971, Tom and Bill Boysen,
founder of the glassblowing program
at Southern Illinois University, came to
Eastern Oregon University and started
Layers of
Transparency
A Precursor of
Weather to Come
Pogonip—the weather-induced buildup
of ice on outdoor objects—is a sure sign
winter is upon us. Farmer’s Almanac says
this winter is going to be cold and wet in
the West. It will be influenced by La Niña,
which is a weather phenomenon caused
by cooler ocean temperatures.
This pogonip encrusted mailbox was
photographed at Lamoille, Nevada.
Tom Dimond’s glass art
offers a multidimensional
medium of expression
Artist Tom Dimond of Cove, Oregon, explains the basic processes involved in
making some of the glass creations on display in his studio.
one of the first accredited glass blowing
programs in the country.
Glass art programs were rare at the
time, so Tom and Bill had to order
equipment from Europe, where there was
a larger glass industry. They ran the program for 20 years, with many students
going on to prestigious careers in glassblowing.
In 2004, Tom retired and reunited
with his college girlfriend, Barbara, and
they settled down at a property in Cove
and began to build the studio.
“I needed a better studio after retiring
from the university system,” says Tom. “I
wanted one that was specifically designed
for glassblowing, and it’s been running
now since 2005. We’ve been selling quite
a bit of art work and doing some produc-
tion work.”
Tom recently got a commission
to make a glass sculpture for a local
restaurant.
“We’re making ends meet and trying
to have an impact in the area,” he says.
Most of the work at the studio is done
during the late fall, winter and early
spring, when the weather is cooler. Tom
has several studio partners who are able
to come and blow glass in the winter,
