Beginning Glass Beads

James Naquin is a glass artist working on tabletop torches creating beads and sculptural work with glass. He focuses on dots and dot stacked beads, small sculptural work inspired by nature, and working in a contrasting color palette. His fascination began in his youth, from watching a glass worker that held public demonstrations at the local mall in south Louisiana. After a trip to Dollywood when he was 14, he spent most of the day watching hot glass blowers create beautiful work. This sealed the deal to pursue his interest in glass. He began his journey in 1999 by setting up his own small lampworking studio. He studied under Tom and Sage Holland, Lauren Stump, Margo Knight, and Wesley Fleming. He is a past member of the Louisiana Crafts Guild and was represented by seven different bead shops across the Southeast and has attended Penland School of Craft both as a studio assistant and as a student. He has a strong passion for the flame and melting glass, and enjoys passing along knowledge he has attained. He currently teaches multi-level glass classes ath Sawtooth School for Visual Art in Winston Salem NC as well as cooking classes at JCCFS.