Art and sciences
Senior glassblower is 'best job on campus'
Surrounded by open flame and shards of glass, James Hodgson insists he has "the best job on campus."
He's K-State's senior glassblower. As such he participates in a broad range of research without stirring from his workshop in the Chemistry/Biochemistry building: His work comes to him.
Though on one afternoon a student was dropping off a handful of standard screw-top vials to be modified, Hodgson's usual jobs are less straight-forward. Common requests would be to add two or three necks to a flask, or to custom-make a vacuum/inert gas manifold.
"You can get things out of catalogs, but it's often not exactly what you want, he said.
Universities and chemical companies maintain artisans like Hodgson for another good reason: Machines can only make symmetrical, coaxial objects like test tubes and flasks. "Once you want to add something on the side, it has to be made by hand.
Glass tubes and sheets aren't perfectly uniform, either. A human can compensate for irregularities, adding heat or moving more quickly as the task dictates.
This June marked the end of Hodgson's yearlong term as president of the American Scientific Glassblowers Society. After organizing the group's annual meeting, he said he was glad to get back to his bench, despite the recognition by his peers.
"He's just a remarkable person, a remarkable craftsman and teacher, said Eric Maatta, head of the chemistry department. "Did he tell you about these Victorian-style glass ornaments he makes every year for the MAC's 'Wrap it Up' sale?
Hodgson confirmed that he's participated in the Manhattan Arts Center's December benefit for the last few years. He donates his share to a scholarship named for Mitsugi Ohno, K-State's previous glassblower.
Hodgson works with two torches that burn a mix of natural gas and oxygen. The glass is borosilicate, the same stuff that makes heatproof cookware, although he also works with the even sturdier quartz glass.
There's not a lot of huffing and puffing. Hodgson often uses just enough breath to keep an object from distorting, or to ease out a bubble that will become a mounting point in the next step. His explanations of technique come before or after he picks up the torch; once the glass meets the flame, there's little time to talk.
One of his more challenging projects came from Stefan Bossmann, a chemistry professor who wanted a "falling film photochemical reactor. It stood about five feet high and required a precisely located internal weir, or dam, that would create a uniform cascade of liquid along its interior.
"Sometimes you can back yourself into a corner on complex projects, Hodgson said. "I was glad to get that job done.
Designing new apparatus is absorbing, but repairs are a critical part of Hodgson's work. A broken vacuum line, for example, will bring an experiment to a screeching halt.
Hodgson says the variety of tasks at a research university "just perfectly suits me, and he seems suited to the job too. He has a scientific background -- his undergraduate degree, from K-State, is in geophysics -- and he trained with Ohno during summer breaks from his studies at Salem Community College. Salem, in Carneys Point, N.J., offers the country's only associate's degree in scientific glass technology.
He teaches an introductory class each spring, equipping students to make their own repairs if their careers take them someplace that lacks a staff glassblower.
In his 11 years as "a kind of glass consultant at K-State, Hodgson has learned that communication is as important as skillful torch work in creating a successful piece.
"I really want to know how it's going to be used, he said. "It gives me pleasure, and it gives me an idea of how to do it better.
Photo: As senior glassblower, James Hodgson is responsible for creating specialized equipment for K-State scientists.
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