Margaret Zinser
Manipulator of glass, practitioner of yoga, lover of fine food and bad jokes, companion to one happy puppy and a very rambunctious kitty, admirer of clouds, expert at bug hunting, oddly enthusiastic about school supplies and organic vegetables.
When I began as a glass artist in 2001, I was working as a lab scientist, preparing to start work for my master’s degree in entomology. I loved the technical challenge of working with a molten medium; it appealed to my scientific background. At the time I used glass as an outlet from my exacting lab work. The fact that lampworked glass imposes few limits on shape, texture, and color speaks to my artistic inclinations. Working with glass keeps me intellectually challenged and nourishes me creatively. The technique, chemistry, and physics of working with glass continue to sustain my scientific, analytical mind. Ultimately, it's that balance that pushed me pursue beadmaking full time after I finished my master’s in 2004.
Many of my earlier bead series are studies in the color and texture of objects from the natural world. More recently my inspiration stems from an urge to translate particular intellectual challenges, which is apparent in my “Maze” series of beads. While this series varies dramatically in design, each bead is a fully solvable maze. I like the idea that the wearer of one of my mazes can engage in solving the puzzle I’ve created.
My “Beetle” series took some time to evolve. Through college and grad school, I did work in the biological illustration of insects. I wanted to create a series that drew inspiration from my illustrations but sculpturally resembled Egyptian scarab medallions. My beetles are stylized and deliberately not representative of specific species, thus allowing me to put aside the meticulous representation necessary for biological illustration.
Recent additions to my body of work include marble adaptations of many of my bead series, and a few new lines of work. The "Doodle" series embraces creative play and exploration, with its only limitations being a white bead, and black enamel. The techniques used in my "Beetle" adapted to include another insect order, the "Butterflies."
My work has been featured in the Flow, Bead & Button, Step By Step Beads, Bead Unique, and in galleries in the U.S., Canada, and Japan. I teach group classes in studios nationwide and private classes in my studio in Tucson, Arizona. My inspiration and motivation come from many fellow artists in this close community of lampworkers and other glass artists. I am deeply grateful to be part of this incredible family.
I’m now thirty-two, and I know that this is only my beginning. Seeing myself as still- pardon the bug reference- in pupation, I look forward to continual creative transformation and growth.
By purchasing MZ Glass beads, marbles, and jewelry, you are making an investment in wearable art, and making an investment in helping me continue exploration in glass. Thank you for your support.
