Magic in the Glass:
The Paperweight Artistry of Charles Kaziun, Jr.
by: Bernard A. Drabeck
2002, Paperweight Press, Santa Cruz, CA
208 pages, $90. hardbound.
flyleaf: “Charles Kaziun has been called the “Father of the American Paperweight Renaissance.” In the early 1940s, he began his solitary journey into foreign glass territory by studying the great paperweights of the past and attempting to discover the secrets of their creation. During his long career, he mastered all of the major paperweight genres: crimp flowers, lampwork, and millefiori, overlays, buttons and bottles. The magnificence of his achievement in every one of these areas has served as both inspiration and touchstone for the generation of great paperweight artists who followed him.
Magic in the Glass is a record of his many accomplishments. First, it is a personal document—a “memoir”(compiled from talks he gave), interviews with his wife and son, and a reminiscence by his daughter. Also in this section are tributes from such paperweight notables as Paul Jokelson, Paul Stankard, and Debbie Tarsitano.
At the heart of this book are more than 450 color images of Kaziun weights, these images present a visual record of his work in all its brilliant and colorful variety. Also included is an annotated bibliography of written material by and about Kaziun: books about paperweights; auction, exhibition, and sale catalogues; magazines, and newspapers.”
