Master of her trade

“Practice what you preach” is a saying that rings true for Sherri Van Pelt.

Spending most of her life as an occupational therapist, Van Pelt encouraged her patients to use art as a form of therapeutic self-expression. Now, Van Pelt is taking her own advice and firing up with creativity. 

For about six years, Van Pelt has been making kiln-formed glass inside her garage. 

Almost every color of the rainbow can be found in her workshop, where she houses multiple kilns, saws and power tools to create a wide range of products. 

Standing a little taller than 5 feet, Van Pelt’s petite frame shows no struggle when lifting a clunky tool or pulling a heavy mask over her face to shield her from temperatures that climb as high as 1,700 degrees. 

“I didn’t start off doing it to sell it,” Van Pelt said of her distinct artwork that features swirling hues of radiant colors along with delicate designs and whimsical motifs. “I just wanted to know how to do it, and so I would make it, and I would open up the kiln, and I would say ‘Oh, this is so beautiful.’” 

Van Pelt was first introduced to the art of kiln-formed glass by friend Mary Aiken, who made the stained-glass windows in the chapel at Children’s of Alabama. 

“She showed me how to cut glass in her studio, and she gave me a bunch of scraps,” the artist said. “She said, ‘You can’t do anything wrong.’”

After seeing the result of the process, which yielded a collage of colors, Van Pelt went out the next day and purchased a kiln for herself. 

“I didn’t have a clue what I was doing,” she said with a laugh. 

It didn’t take long, however, for Van Pelt to master the trade. One kiln quickly turned into five, and shipments of glass began to roll in from 18-wheeler trucks.

The endless possibilities of color, form, light and texture when working with glass appeal to Van Pelt. With a penchant for infusing bright, vibrant colors in her work — which run the gamut of tabletop items to jewelry — Van Pelt said people have begun coining her artwork “happy glass.”

Van Pelt said she doesn’t mind the name.

“When I started doing shows, people would tell me, ‘Oh, your colors just make me so happy,’ and they started saying it over and over, so I said, ‘Well, I’m just going to call it happy glass,’” Van Pelt said. 

Along with the joy she finds from producing a variety of products, Van Pelt admitted she also finds solace in the hobby. 

“When I’m doing it, it’s all I can think about,” she said. “I’ve spent so much of my career talking about the therapeutic value of the arts. I would use art with my patients to help them physically and emotionally.” 

Even before Van Pelt began working with glass, she gravitated toward the arts as a form of self-expression. Especially in some situations, she said, art provided a needed escape.  

“Twelve years ago I was diagnosed with breast cancer, and so art was an important part of my journey there,” she said. “I did some drawings, paintings — just kind of part of the process.” 

Now cancer free, Van Pelt said art continues to provide an outlet for creativity and expression. By experimenting with different forms of glass, she said, she is able to see how the material reacts and blends under high temperatures. 

Sometimes, Van Pelt said she surprises herself with the outcome. 

“It’s so beautiful, but it’s a long process,” she said. “There is nothing fast about it.” 

Throughout Van Pelt’s Hoover home, which is covered almost wall to wall with art from local and regional artists, Van Pelt displays some of her work — each piece with its own special story to tell. 

Her work, she said, is inspired by a little bit of everything. 

“Everything I look at now, I think about glass,” Van Pelt said. “When I’m outside and I see birds and flowers, I think they’re so beautiful. And the colors God put on the birds and the flowers, I mean, you can’t do any better than that.” 

For more, visit sherrivanpelt.com.