Travers Thurman

Hemlock Pocket Trees

Boroscilicate glass

“A friend of mine lit up one time when she saw one of my fir trees and immediately thought it was a hemlock. She explained that she and her husband have worked to combat an invasive species that is destroying the hemlock population in Western North Carolina. As a result, I became a bit fascinated with the idea of immortalizing hemlocks in glass. I call trees in this format ‘pocket trees.’ They're small. They can stand on a desk, and you can carry them in your pocket.”

— Travers Thurman

About the artist

Travers Thurman

American

Travers Thurman is a flameworker and glass artist based in Western North Carolina, where he creates intricate borosilicate glass marbles and paperweights, specializing in encasing detailed tree forms in clear glass. His process involves mixing colors into cane, drawing them down into fine stringers, and using these to handcraft elements of the trees. Through careful placement of semitransparent colors and layers of clear, he aims to mimic the effect of light passing through leaves when the artwork is backlit. This technique requires precision to avoid bubbles and burn marks.

Inspired by Impressionism, Thurman adapts the concept of mixing colors intentionally to convey a wealth of information with each individual mark, creating a rich visual texture in the three-dimensional space of glass. Debuting his tree series at a marble show in 2022, Thurman found his work resonated, and decided to embrace his focus on this distinctive style. He continues his work in the beautiful Appalachian mountains, drawing constant inspiration from the natural world that surrounds him.