Expressions: Out of the Fire

Surfing and glassblowing don’t seem to have much in common, but designer John Pomp will tell you otherwise. Both activities require an intimate understanding of the flow of forces and a keen sense of balance. They entail constant motion, thinking in the moment, and immediate responses to changing conditions. And if you stop, everything collapses.  

John Pomp Studios exists at the intersection of art, design and engineering. The 65,000-square-foot Kensington shop is in constant motion. Fifty employees shape glass and metal into lighting and furniture, which they then ship across the country and the globe. Everything they make is fully customizable and each component is manufactured on site. Many of the machines are custom made to respond to the unique demands. Fabrication processes are developed through extensive experimentation and the resulting forms reflect the nature of the materials and the processes by which they are shaped.   

Three furnaces burn at 2,300 degrees throughout the year, consuming 1,500 pounds of glass per week. Glass blowing is a tactile interaction with fire that is hypnotic and dangerous. The material is stunningly seductive, and its forms are fragile, beautiful and  
ephemeral. John Pomp describes his aesthetic as organic modern — he draws inspiration from simple forms and natural materials shaped by hand. Working with glass is a choreography of movement, force and material, and the results are an expression of experience. 

CAPTIONS: 

[1] The Radiant Mobile Pendant  

PHOTO: JOHN POMP STUDIOS 

[2] John Pomp, Justin Thompson, and Michael Herman engaged in the choreography of glass blowing.  

PHOTO: TIMOTHY KERNER 

[3] John Pomp explains the crushing process that forms the supports of the Warp Table.  

PHOTO: JOHN POMP STUDIOS 

[4] Caro Strott shapes a disc for a Radiant fixture while Chris Rogstad looks on.  
PHOTO: JOHN CARLANO