Joan Hiebert

I began working in Stained Glass in the early 70’s when our children were small and hobby time was limited. I was a founding member of the Saskatoon Glassworker’s Guild and benefited from their workshops. I purchased a kiln in the 80’s and it allowed me to learn techniques of slumping and fusing, especially with recycled glass. A Guild sponsored long weekend workshop at B’Hava Hot Glass in Calgary was a most exiting experience for me and I knew that glass blowing and sculpting was what I wanted to do in retirement.

Al and I took multiple classes during the “Summer Series” at Red Deer Collage and we built the Hot Shop at Blackstrap in 2002. The glass studio at Shield’s Town site was designed for cold, warm, and hot glass. Our joint retirement allowed us to work full time in glass and to share our studio space with other artists.

We currently offer introductory glass blowing classes with the help of glass artist Todd Lyons and we host most of the Saskatoon Glassworkers’ Guild workshops. Having a multipurpose shop/studio and a husband who is a technical expert is my idea of a dream retirement. My goal for this year is to increase my experience with kiln casting and flamework.

Al and I have attended CollaboratioNZ for the past 4 events and have enjoyed the collegial atmosphere of that New Zealand Artists’ Collaborative week long event. We have been fortunate to experience the mentorship of Shona Firman, a world class kiln caster as she comes to Saskatchewan for extended visits. We are looking forward to Emma Collaboration this summer along with Shona and a group of fine local and international artists.

Events participated in

• 2022 Collaboration
• 2018 Collaboration
• 2016 Collaboration