What is Dichroic Glass?

 

 

Dichroic glass is defined as the property of having more than one color, especially when viewed from different angles. The "transmitted color" is the color you see when you are actually looking through the glass. The "reflected color" is the color you see when light bounces off the surface of the glass.

Dichroic glass is made in a vacuum chamber. The glass that is to be coated with various metallic colors is fastened to an "arm" in the top of the vacuum chamber. While this glass rotates above, a crucible below containing various metal oxides such as titanium, silicon, and magnesium, is heated by an electronic beam. The evolving metal vapors rise to the rotating glass above, where the metal oxides condense into a thin "dichroic" layer.

Specific combinations of this dichroic glass is then cut into select sizes, layered, and carefully fired to ultimately produce these unique and beautiful "glass stones".

The artist will then take this glass, using several different colors, and layer them in a kiln to produce beautiful glass art pieces.