URMC secretary doubles as glass artist

by Saira Abbasey '01

Ferris

I n most households, glass is hidden away from small children. Faith Davis Ferris, however, has been surrounded by glass her entire life. In fact, Ferris was even taught by her father how to "play" with glass. Now, she has developed a talent for creating glass lampwork beads and incorporating them into jewelry.

"Lampwork," a more obscure form of glass-blowing and glass-working, takes its name from the belief that in ancient times small amounts of glass were melted in the flames of actual lamps and softened to create rudimentary shapes. Modern lampwork, Ferris explains, is done with a high-tech torch that mixes oxygen and propane gas to create an intensely hot flame, allowing her to melt the glass and work it into small amounts with great detail.

A secretary in cardiology and a staff member of the Medical Center since 1974, Ferris creates stunningly beautiful beads from Moretti glass, a soft Italian glass that produces extraordinary colors. With a bench burner she heats the glass, sculpting and mixing colors. Within minutes or an hour (depending on the piece), she has created a smooth, glittering one- to two-inch bead that accents any outfit, or even a small and delicate figurine bead, such as a dragon, mermaid, or goldfish. Ultimately, her finished designs are earrings, necklaces, or bracelets. She also sends her beads to other jewelry designers who incorporate them into their personal design schemes, and to bead stores where they're bought on-site by designers and collectors alike.

How does one develop a talent like making glass lampwork beads? When your father is David Davis, a master glassblower trained in scientific apparatus, the process is a little bit easier. To perpetuate a skill that's known by very few people, Davis was thrilled to pass down the art to his daughter through an apprenticeship. "It's been a really good chance to get to know each other and get inside each other's heads. We have a wonderful relationship, so it's nice to spend the time together," she says. This spring, she'll be spending more time with her father when she works as a teaching assistant in his class at More Fire Studio.

Though she has been mastering her skills, Ferris doesn't consider herself an expert glass-worker: "There isn't really a ceiling. There is always someplace you can go." She believes that one can become more comfortable and experienced. However, the realm of glass-working is so vast that it's impossible to perfect all techniques.

As modest as she is, Ferris has been very successful in the business aspect of her art, and her knowledge of business on the Internet is considerable. Not only does she have her own Web site, but she also has been very successful selling on Internet auctions such as eBay and Amazon.com.

A strong advocate of optimism, Ferris lives by the phrase "What you believe, the world perceives." "If you just believe in yourself, then you're all set from there," she says. She has kept some of her early pieces as a visual diary, keeping her humble and keeping herself encouraged.

Ferris believes that her materials and skills will continue to change and evolve, allowing for new and diverse pieces to be added to her collection in the future. Locally, her work is available at Beads 'N Things in Pittsford, the 1812 Country Store in Hemlock, the Painted Garden in Geneseo, Hecate's Pupil on Monroe Avenue in Rochester, and on her Web site at http://homestead.dejanews.com/user.glasschick/QuestGlassStudio.html.

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