A Glass Blower’s Companion with Jason Michael -Helping Today's Glass Artist Think Like an Artistic Entrepreneur - Episode 118- Chris Piazza aka-@KrispysGlass (on Instagram)

Episode 118- Chris Piazza aka-@KrispysGlass (on Instagram)

Explicit content warning

07/18/16 • 111 min

A Glass Blower’s Companion with Jason Michael -Helping Today's Glass Artist Think Like an Artistic Entrepreneur

Episode 118-Chris Piazza (aka-KrispysGlass) As mentioned in the intro I have an idea of doing a "Christmas in July Secret Santa Pendant Trade". The way this would work is by you sending me your shipping info via email or via a direct message to the WyzGuy Radio facebook page. I would then randomly pair your info with another's and then send each of you the others info..if that makes sense..lol.. In my opinion it would be super cool to receive a pendant form an artists half way around the world. Your info is safe with me and will never be shared with anyone except in this case with another artist whom would be sending you a pendant. Please contact me to let me know what you think and whether you'd like to participate or not. I'm 100% participating in this and hope you will too!! email [email protected] or www.facebook.com/wyzguyradio In this episode Chis and I sit down in the virtual studios of WyzGuy Media and discuss his glass journey which started years before he even lit a torch for the first time. Chris is a great example of what it truly takes to become successful as a functional production artists. He has overcome many personal hurdles along his journey which we discuss as well as those who have had his back and shown what a mentor is all about. We discuss the current landscape of pricing, hype vs. real pricing , the potential of a "bubble " as well as how to properly setup a studio and what it takes to be an apprentice. I truly hope you enjoy this conversation with Chris as there are a ton of takeaways. @krispysglass on instagram Chris ‘Krispy’ Piazza (@KrispysGlass & www.KAglass.com) is the owner of KA-Glass, LLC. He was born in the suburbs of Chicago and learned to blow glass in Colorado. Krispy started on a MAPP gas torch on a porch of a condo at 10,000 feet during the winter, until he got an apprenticeship in Denver under Tyrel R. (@RoneGlass). He was brought up learning the fundamentals. Started with a jar of marbles and moved on to making sets of a 1,000 fume spoons, wrap’n rakes and frit spoons. Krispy put in the work and paid his dues during his apprenticeship. After about a year Tyrel brought them up to work at Plump Glass with Ryan R (@RosburgGlass) in Boulder. This was a great experience of working with many great artists from @CajunRick, @Marni420, Nancy Nagel (www.NancyNagel.com). During the end of this period Chris ran into some personal issues and really got to experience the bonds of having a true glass family. He moved back to Chicago to restart. At first it looked like he was done with glass, but knew that couldn’t be true. For about 9 months he worked in a warehouse until he found a space to work. Rather quickly life came together. Krispy worked at All About It a local headshop for a short time until getting a scientific glass position making X-Ray tubes. He learned his way around a lathe, working with microscopic tolerances and glass to metal seals. This job gave Krispy the opportunity to purchase his own house and build out his first studio where he currently has 4 benches set up. His first apprentice has been with him for a year and a half (@saturn_glass) and recently has 2 new students working with him as well. Krispy believes in passing on the craft the same way it was passed to him so each of the 3 began by making a jar of marbles. Krispy has mainly focused on production but is starting to branch out to find his own style. He also has a side glass business geared towards marketing using pipes as a medium (@promopipes & www.PromoPipes.com). Having a diverse platform of products from $1 hitters to $100+ rigs allows KA-Glass to perceiver. Focus on quality and consistency creates stability for Krispy and the shop as a whole.

Previous Episode

Episode 116- Selling your Art (part-3/5)Custom Orders and Commissions

Episode 116- Commisions and Customs : part3/5 selling your art B to C As the functional Glass scene continues to evolve with social media taking over a big portion of the landscape in tegards to marketing it gives the artist an Opportunity to promote theirselves. One area that not all artists participate in is customs or commissions. In my opinion this area is one that will give you an opportunity to promote your work in a more intimate way. When you create a one of a kind for a client they are more likely to promote your work not only through their social media feeds but also in person with their friends. Imagine if your client takes your work in the road and share it with others while traveling. The potential first hand exposure and function of your work is exponentially greater then if they shared it in Instagram. Even if say they get 1,000 likes on an image or video of the client using your work the 20-30 friends or aqua intended that they share your work with will be more likely to contact you to purchase their own custom or seek your work out in their local retail spots. Word of mouth is and has always been the greatest form of advertisement. With all that being said before we get into the details On how To go about setting up a custom order it is imperative that we give thanks and acknowledge that the retail stores are on the front lines of our industry and shouldn't be overlooked when it comes to selling your work. This episode is dedicated to the process of working with a client for a commission as well as how to set yourself up with your work to give you an easier system to give your clients to follow making the custom order a fun and engaging process from start to finish. Over the span of my glass career I've had the opportunity to create some amazing works of art for clients creating everything from $20,000.00 chandeliers to $3500.00 rigs and everything in between. By working hard at my craft as well as having been exposed to interior designers and other types of retail entities, I've learned through observation how to go about the process of working with your potential client from the initial consultation to the final install. Every client has their own needs and wants and it's your job to find out exactly what they are looking for and visualizing in their head One of the worst thing a client can say to you is "your the artist, have fun!" In the end this can be the worse situation to be in. Finding some form of direction will helo you finetune the price of the work as well as give yourself and your client an estimated time of completion Start off by asking your client what their budget is. This will give you a guide and a boundary to set based on what you are being asked to make. This will also give you a chance to estimate the time it will take from start to finish making sure you aren't undercharging or overcharging. One way to help you in this process is to finetune your lines of work which will give you a baseline to work with Here's how I go about making this work. This is from my personal experiences and a way that had made this process less of a challange and more of a fun time for both parties involved Let's use a custom 14mm WyzGuy water pipe for example : My baseline retail price for a standard 14mm WyzGuy is $180.00. This model is a clear body with colored accents. Brows and wings and a male joint. If a client asks for a full color WyzGuy my base price is $225.00. If they want opals I charge $25.00 per opal. If they want a full crushed opal body it's an additional $100.00. The wings on the standard WyzGuy are flat against the body. If they want them extended out at its sides it's 25.00 extra. All these extras are my way of upwelling my work. So instead of selling a cheese burger I'm also adding fries and a coke. This gives me a way to finetune a price and time to produce . Now another area of commissions is work that is outside of your norm. For instance a specific character or maybe even a style rig you've never made before but maybe always wanted to. Sometimes a commission will give you the opportunity to try and make new items. Whether a character or new model this type of commission can be a little tricky. Based on your skill level don't be ashamed to let a client know tat you are not ready to make something that they are asking. We all Have limits it just depends on your Time and financial situations to whether or not you can take a risk by trying to make something. There has been several Times where a specific custom took 3-4 attempts to get it right without catastrophe. This can get expensive and defeating. So step outside your box but maybe not too far. To get in the same page with your client you'll need to establish a few details beige getting started.

For one like before find out if they have a budget This will give you a chance to say no right away of it feelsLike they are low balling the work.
Next once a specific budget is established and an idea...