In
the
world
of
glass
art,
Tim
Tate
needs
no
introduction.
“I
am
the
only
gay
male
glass
blower
on
this
earth,”
he
claims.
“I’ve
asked
every
glass
school
and
no
one’s
even
heard
of
one
before
me.”
To
most
people,
blowing
glass
may
not
sound
like
the
most
appealing
thing
to
do
in
your
spare
time,
but
for
Tate
it
has
become
a
passion
that
is
leading
to
success.
“I
found
my
voice
in
art
with
glass,
or
it
found
me,”
he
says.
Tate,
42,
learned
in
the
early
’80s
that
he
was
HIV-positive.
After
discovering
his
HIV
status,
his
life
actually
improved
in
many
ways.
“I
didn’t
work
with
glass
until
I
found
out
I
was
HIV-positive,”
Tate
explains,
noting
that
he
has
had
no
physical
imparities
because
of
his
condition.
“HIV
gave
me
creative
drive
in
my
artwork.”
Finding
out
he
was
HIV-positive
also
affected
Tate’s
life
in
another
way.
“My
goal
was
that
I
wanted
to
leave
a
legacy
behind,”
he
says.
THE
GAY
ARTIST
whose
“sacred
heart”
images
are
on
display
at
the
Fraser
Gallery
until
July
18
said
they
are
related
to
his
health
status
and
a
tribute
to
his
mother.
“I
grew
up
in
an
atheist
home
and
when
my
mother
died
from
cancer
she
donated
her
body
to
science,”
Tate
explains.
“Once
they
were
done
with
her,
they
cremated
her
body
and
asked
for
someone
from
the
family
to
come
and
pick
up
her
remains.
“So
I
claimed
her
ashes,
and
the
first
heart
I
crafted
was
created
to
hold
[them],”
Tate
says.
“I’m
the
only
one
who
knows
where
they
are.”
This
helps
explain
the
gay
artist’s
decision
to
create
canopic
jars
like
those
the
Egyptians
used
to
hold
the
organs
of
corpses
buried
in
the
pyramids.
Tate
says
his
artwork
includes
healing
images
that
help
people
who
are
ill.
The
pieces
are
breathtaking,
from
the
colors
to
the
careful
technique
he
uses
to
form
glass
sculptures
that
reveal
subtle
images.
He
says
it
took
10
years
to
fully
learn
how
to
make
the
pieces.
Today,
he
can
create
a
masterpiece
in
four
hours.
They
don’t
come
cheap,
however.
Tate’s
glass
art
ranges
in
price
from
$450
to
$2,500.
“Before,
the
only
way
you
got
glass
was
from
a
factory.
Today,
more
things
are
being
asked
from
glass,”
he
says.
“In
my
pieces,
I
use
ceramic
and
steel
because
they’re
not
just
figurative
or
decorative,
they’re
content-driven.”
Tate
is
one
of
few
local
glass
artists
who
have
been
approached
about
displaying
his
pieces
at
a
traditional
art
gallery.
“With
the
current
economy,
the
art
market
is
suffering
and
it’s
hard
to
take
risks
[on
local
artists],”
notes
Catriona
Fraser,
owner
of
the
Fraser
Gallery,
which
has
sites
in
Georgetown
and
Bethesda.
Fraser
became
a
fan
of
Tate’s
work
after
seeing
it
three
years
ago
at
the
first
Art-O-Matic,
a
month-long
exhibit
of
artists’
work
in
metropolitan
D.C.
“Many
galleries
use
artists
that
they
know
will
sell,”
Fraser
says.
“They
want
two-dimensional
fine
art.
They’re
so
set
on
the
focus
of
the
gallery
that
even
bringing
in
something
like
fine
art
glass
[is
unthinkable].
But
what
Tim’s
doing
is
amazing.”
Fraser
said
her
galleries
support
local
and
emerging
artists
like
Tate,
and
she
believes
his
work
will
sell.
“Once
a
few
of
the
pieces
sell,
other
galleries
will
realize
that
they
should
showcase
glass
sculptures
as
well,”
Tate
predicts.
In
addition
to
being
an
artist,
he
is
founder
and
director
of
the
Washington
Glass
School
and
teaches
a
steel
and
glass
sculpture
development
course
for
serious
artists.
“I
want
people
to
see
beyond
beauty,”
Tate
says.
“Technique
means
nothing.
I
want
them
to
take
technique
and
add
content
into
it.”
MORE
INFO
‘Seized
Moments,
Captured
Memories’
Fraser
Gallery,
1054
31st
St.,
NW
Until
July
18
202-298-6450
www.thefrasergallery.com
