![]() That was a big bonus and it pushed glass to the forefront.”Īs for cannabis, Shelbo says his use started at age 15, “to self medicate for depression and recreationally for the love of the plant and the process of consuming it.” That included “rolling joints, packing bowls and studying the buds. “And it ended up being a perfect match of having an art-based job and also be learning the thing I was doing at the same time. “Then I found glass blowing,” Shelbo says. ![]() Shelbo says that long before he ever arrived at community college for glass art, he was always interested in art and was always thinking of different mediums he could try, like bronze sculpting or painting. “I wanted to experience both because I loved everything about cannabis and glass pipes, but I also was finding my love for goblet-making, goblin-making,” he says, referring to a particularly popular recurring piece in his portfolio. “I was an anomaly the whole time, though,” Shelbo says, because he always kept one foot in the fine art side of things while nurturing his pipemaking alongside it. He says everyone he knows who started in the mid to late 1990s has a “completely different view” of the pathway through pipemaking than anyone who has started in the last 5 to 10 years. We had to do the hard grind that has nothing to do with Instagram or Facebook or anything that’s going on now,” Shelbo says. “I guess I was part of that next emerging class of pipe-makers-slash-glass-blowers in the post-Operation Pipe Dreams world of getting out there, visiting head shops, selling our wares, going all over San Diego from Oceanside down to Ocean Beach on a mission to empty our gun cases filled with pipes. Still, internet and brick-and-mortar sales can be tightly regulated, and sometimes the law does crack down on such makers and sellers. Now, there’s a thriving collector’s market for high-end glass, something that Shelbo has been able to capitalize on and gain notoriety from. Times have changed and Cannabis-oriented glass artists are no longer being arrested (though there are still some who turn up their noses at the art form). Chong, himself, was charged with one count of “conspiracy to distribute drug paraphernalia.” The eventual criminal case centered around actor Tommy Chong, of Cheech & Chong fame, and resulted in a variety of arrests and charges. In 2003, just after he completed studies at Palomar College, where Shelbo studied glassmaking from 1998 to 2001, a nationally-coordinated paraphernalia crackdown effort channeled through state and local law enforcement agencies called Operation Pipe Dreams was enacted. “When I started, cannabis was illegal everywhere and in many places, so was paraphernalia. “The stigma of the glassblower and the stigma of the stoner - that’s kind of timeless,” Shelbo says. Historically, there has been a divide in the glass art community between what some deem to be more serious glass art and pieces that are intended to be functional. However, it is notable that a glass artist known for making cannabis paraphernalia is being featured alongside other types of glass sculptors. His inclusion in the show’s roster is a nod to his artistry and proficiency in glass blowing, regardless of how the piece ends up being used or displayed. “Blown Away” is considered to be family-friendly, so viewers should not expect Shelbo to be making bongs or dab rigs, as the glass apparatuses used to heat and vaporize cannabis concentrates are called. From these techniques come glass pipes for smoking cannabis, the pieces for which Shelbo is best known, though he also works in mixed-media and sculpture. In particular, he works with torches, microwave kilns, and mini furnace setups. With a wide following on social media - Shelbo’s Instagram account ( boasts more than 82,000 followers - he’s known as a glass artist who can tackle a range of styles and techniques. ![]() Mike Shelbo, who lives with his family in Vista, where he grew up, is one of the featured artists on the gauntlet reality glass blowing show. ![]() San Diegans might recognize a familiar face on season two of Netflix’s “Blown Away.” ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |