This book is a record of the fun and hard work had by the students in the 2011 Kiln Glass Summer Studio at the Prague Institute. The pages are laid out chronologically and include our projects and places traveled. Most students brought little, or no, experience in working with glass with them to this course, but through their dedication over a six week semester, each participant developed an in-depth relationship to the challenging material of glass.



These pages reflect three years of program development. A 13th century building in Prague center had to be re-wired to accommodate the specialized glass kilns, a three day class excursion coined "The Glass Route" in Northern Bohemia was plotted, and a demanding syllabus formulated.



My greatest appreciation goes to Dana Bartelt, the director of the Prague Institute, for recognizing the potential that this program could have, and for orchestrating every aspect required in its implementation.



I would also like to thank the Czech glass designers and artists our class was fortunate to meet and glean inspiration from. Finally, a toast to my students, who were courageous enough to fully embrace this subject, while at the same time, facing the demands of living in an unfamiliar country.



Na zdraví!



-Benton Jones, instructor