Frank Tuuri

Frank is a dichroic glass artist - pronounced die-crow-ick. The glass was first developed for scientific applications such as lasers and space mirrors.

Vaporized metal oxides are deposited on very thin glass in a specialized vacuum chamber. The types of metal oxide used and number of layers determines the final color. There is no pigment used in dichroic glass. The raw metal oxides are clear. The colors are produced by light being bent, just like in a rainbow or dragonfly wing. Unlike dyes or pigments which absorb 50% of the light, most of the light is reflected directly back to your eyes. This accounts for the unusual brilliance of the glass.

The process involves using many layers of glass and many steps to arrive at a finished piece. The glass is fired in a kiln four or five times to achieve the right effects. Each firing reaches 1400 degrees and can take up to 15 hours as the glass must heat and cool very slowly.

The Gallery carries a full range of Frank's dichroic jewelry from earrings to pendants to multi piece necklaces all in brilliant colors.

Frank also created whimsical sun catchers using traditional materials and techniques. He uses only the best genuine stained glass for all his pieces, and the metal wrap is specially made for durability and to prevent darkening as they age.

His cat and angel sun catchers are very popular, bringing smiles to customer's faces.