Blown Away (2019–…): Season 1, Episode 8 - The Grass is Greener - full transcript

[Nick Uhas] We've built
North America's biggest hot shop

where ten exceptional artists

push themselves to creative extremes.

Because if they can survive
our fiery competition,

they'll win a life-changing prize package.

Now four remain.

I'm Nick Uhas and this is Blown Away.

Usually, one of the first things
that a glassblower learns how to make

is a flower.

And they also make popular items
in the gift shop.

But you didn't come here
to make gift shop daisies.



For today's challenge,
we want you to create

exceptional botanical-themed pieces
of glass art.

I'd like to see
how you explore relationships

and scale and color and texture.

I really want you
to use your prodigious skills

to really make something spectacular.

Helping to evaluate your work today

is someone who knows
all about growing creative careers.

She's the president of Sheridan College,

whose students have assisted you
here in the hot shop.

Dr. Janet Morrison.

[Alex] She has a PhD,

which I'm pretty sure stands
for "pretty hard diploma."

[applause]



I'm really hoping to see detail,

a real attention
to what natural scape looks like.

I'm a horrible gardener,
but I like composition.

[Nick] Today, as an added bonus,

you'll each have two assistants.

That's huge.

You can do three times the work

with two people helping.

You'll have five-and-a-half hours
to design, create

and present an original piece
of blown glass art.

We'll be evaluating
your floral masterpieces

based on your technical skill,

how well you follow the creative brief,

and how much creative bravery
you show in your artwork.

Your time starts... now.

This challenge is... botanical.

What can I say? Blank page.

[Alex]
"Glass flowers" overwhelmingly describes

a pretty cruddy subsection of glass art.

[Patrick] Tricky part is

not to make it look like
a tacky plastic thing.

[Janusz] I'm worried about being able
to do these leaves and flowers,

I've never done anything like this.

But I've certainly seen people try it.

I've made hundreds of those little flowers

for gift shops
when I was working for a studio.

Nothing like that.

That's going to be a...

macro shot of a dandelion.

They're my daughter's favorite.

My partner up in Philadelphia
is a historian of science

who studies 19th-century botany.

In the 19th century
there was a huge market

for rare botanic specimens.

[Deborah] I don't relate to flowers
very much.

I relate to opening the fridge
and finding a potato sprouting.

I think people around me
will be doing very colorful things,

but I'm going for the potato.

Fingers crossed I can get it done.
I've got two assistants, so...

I'll keep them busy.

[Deborah] Colors are first.

Could you guys just push this back
so it leaves the point,

get my tools out,
give the obvious ones a little clean?

[glass rattles]

[Deborah] Let's get a reasonable section
of each one in.

We'll start with cane for this,

because one of you will be lucky enough
to cut a thousand little...

[laughs]

[Janusz] There's still four of us.

[Patrick]
The last one, no one got eliminated,

so that was different.

[Deborah] Janusz and Alex,
their heads were on the chopping block.

[clatter]

I did think I was the one leaving.

We're gonna also do an enamel white.

[Janusz] I want all that enamel white.

[Patrick]
You don't hope for anyone specific,

but you still want someone to go.
[laughs]

[whistling]

[Deborah] I feel like I got to kick ass

and represent.

Anybody that's other,
anybody that's marginalized in any way.

I'm the last one standing
that represents any of that.

When it comes out,
it's kind of purple-pink,

then it goes to yellowy cream.

[Alex]
While we wait for the color to heat up,

I'm going to make this clear middle piece.

I have on my calendar
the last day that I could be here,

if I make it to the finals,
and we're really getting close to that.

[Janusz] I'm starting to get tired.

If I do get a little snappy,
just put it down to that.

[Nick] From the surface,
creating a flower feels

like it'll be pretty easy.

[Katherine] If the glassblowers
are after a hyper-realistic flower,

that's challenging.

They might do better
being a little more interpretive.

Bring the ladder a bit more towards me,
please.

We don't have much time to make
hyper-realistic flowers.

[Deborah] Time's ticking,

as usual, as per usual.

I'm doing extensive color tests.
If it looks like...

something we do not want,
we're going to have to discard.

I had to find the browns
that looked most potato-like

and the sprout colors

that looked the most sprout-like.

That pink sucks.

You can spend all day on color.

[Janusz]
I must make about 20 blades of grass,

three or four little sprouts,

taller stems with flowers and leaves,

two puddles of glass, plus a bowl.

and I've got to pull and chop the cane,

set it up on a plate
and preheat the plate.

There's a lot to do.

[Alex] I put some texture on the glass.
It'll make the colors a little stripy.

[Katherine] Some of the glassblowers
are used to working very symmetrically.

Flowers and organic matter
have a sort of extra gesture and movement.

That is a different mindset
when you're blowing glass.

-[clink]
-Whoa!

Nice catch!

No running!

[Katherine] They may make a lot of parts.
Looking at Janusz,

I feel like maybe he's making
some very long, leafy blades.

Not all of those may end up
in the final arrangement.

Maybe it will just be the one

that's got the right length
and curve to it.

-[Nick] Looks like he's making taffy.
-It's very similar to taffy processes.

Definitely looking like a candy factory
out there today.

Blow.

How's it going?

We've done a lot of color tests
to get the colors right.

It's a potato that sprouts
in your refrigerator.

So the potato's going to be...

-Oversized, blown?
-Just this size.

I feel like this is
a bit of an in-between size.

It's not life-size,
but it's not really oversized.

[Deborah] She's like,
"You're in-between on sizes."

Red lights start flashing.

I don't want it to seem
like a big pop art thing,

like the other challenge.

You're right.

More realistic in scale,
but not so it fades away in the gallery.

Yes.

-I don't have answers for you.
-I know.

I know you can't comment.
[laughs]

Yes, looking forward to it. Good luck!

Bye.

This is not a piece of pop art.

I got to take a definitive stand
on what I'm making.

Conceptually, I got to make this thing...

life-sized.

First thing is the basic shape.

Blow.

Stop!

And then I'm going to crizzle the surface

by dunking it in water,

one of my favorite things to do in glass.

It's so dramatic and you think,

"Can I really do this
and have it survive?"

It gives the effect I want.

I could make it look older,
more shriveled, quite easily,

by dunking it even more times,
heating and dunking...

I love doing that process.

[laughs]

[clattering]

Oh, potato down!

My potato hit the floor and broke.

Not a good feeling.

Hurry!
My hands are burning off, everybody.

No. Bench.

It's hot enough. I'll stick it on.

I have to take patience at this point.

Turn!

If you don't get it right...
you just lose it.

Flash!

Other people would think
you couldn't rescue it.

Let's see if I can get this.
Make a small potato.

It's a thrilling moment to work glass.
It's just pure instinct at that point.

I'm feeling confident
I can bring it back to life.

I gave it CPR, glass CPR,

and got it into a really cute...

baking-potato size.

So I'm gonna re-water the end.

Okay.

It looks great.

[Patrick] Today's challenge,
we were asked to create

a botanical piece of glass art

I'm sure I will be busy
with my two assistants

to the very last minute.

[Janusz] Alex got lucky on this one.

His partner is a botanist.

[Alex]
I want to make this miniature greenhouse

that evokes 19th century architecture

and contains a specimen

that looks like something
kind of rotten or dead.

[blowing]

There we go.

That's what I was looking for.

Winning this competition would...

validate, in some ways...

Some of the care, you know,
that I put into acquiring

this odd skillset.

I've got just as much chance coming out

on top as anybody else.

Good job, everybody.

-How's it going, Patrick?
-Good, how are you?

I felt you sensed my presence.

I feel the Force.
[laughs]

What are you working on?

The top of the pistil of my dandelion.

A little bit of cane here
to make those fine lines.

What's the inspiration
behind the dandelion?

They're my daughter's favorite flowers.

-Nice.
-She likes to blow...

the blow ball.

It's a pretty magical experience.

Daughter's name is Tui

and she's four.

So far, her favorite flower
is the dandelion.

She makes big bouquets
and brings them back in the house.

Okay, off.

Nice.

[Janusz] I'm not sleeping very well.

I'm missing my wife and my boy.

And...

he's learned to speak in sentences
since I've left.

But I'm doing this for the family
as well as for me.

[Deborah] I'll make as many potatoes
as I possibly can.

Yes, this is beautiful.

I got a couple of people cheering me on...

I got my mom, she's saying prayers.
That's what she does.

I got my long-distance girlfriend,

sending psychic messages.

They think I'm going to win it,

of course.

everybody who's supporting you
thinks you'll win it.

I'm welling up.

[sniffs]

Means a lot to me.
I want to take it to the end.

At least get to number one and two.

Blow a puff.

[Patrick]
Every challenge is the most important.

If you don't make it to next,
the last one doesn't really matter.

-Beautiful.
-Thanks.

The forefront of the piece
is a shallow glass dish.

I've got to inflate it,
make it into a shallow bubble shape.

And then basically open it up
into a plate.

Then curl it back into a low ball.

The ball's actually going to rock
for a minute or two, at least.

One potato...

two potato...

three potato... four!

Four potatoes!

[tinkling]

Okay, it's important
that I keep the canes really straight...

Start by heating them
for about 40 seconds.

Because I'm making a lid
that has a little fold on the lip of it.

When they fold over on themselves,
you'll see if they're off,

and then I have to make
the components of the plant.

[torch roars]

[Patrick] I try new stuff every time
to keep it interesting

for everyone, especially me.

[rattling]

What will make my work stand out today

is the color pattern I use
for the main part.

Get out of there before it sticks!
I'll be coming.

Murrine is a glass technique.

The design or the color pattern

is actually on a cross-section
of the cane.

-It's going to be perfect!
-Yes.

Something...

[squeaking]

it'll be tricky.

I don't know if the other competitors
noticed the ladles on the wall, but I had.

I gotta make these glass puddles
for the bottom of the piece.

I'll ladle some glass
out of the furnace...

go all the way around...

and pull it out onto the marver.

I need a clean pour. It's got to look
like a nice, clean puddle.

The risky part is that the marver
cools the glass really quickly.

Okay, don't do that again.

I realize that I have to do it
in two pours.

And I must do it quickly,

so one side isn't much colder
than the other.

Cut that off.

[snipping]

Got to cut those off. Come on. Oh no!

[snip]

Be more deliberate, please.

We've gotta do that again.

[splashing, hissing]

Open.

[snip]

Good. Get back on that seam.

We must get it off the marver
into the annealing oven.

It's a bit sloppy but we got the job done.

[Katherine] Last 60 minutes!

[Deborah] This is where two assistants
really paid off.

Let's make this one go quick! Flip it!

Woo! Uh-oh.
[laughs]

[tapping]

[Katherine] 30 minutes left!

Does that look like an egg?

-There you go.
-[tapping]

[Deborah]
I think I've a really good chance.

I think I'm growing in this process.

That is how you win a competition.

You don't stay in the same place.

-High five!
-High five!

[tools rattle]

[Deborah] Ooh!

I don't think it's my strongest idea.
I hope...

someone's got a less strong idea.

[Janusz] Today's challenge,
we're asked to create

a botanical piece of glass art.

[Alex] My piece is telling a story
in a way other than words.

[Patrick] I really hope
that the evaluator will appreciate

the technical effort
and the visual effect.

[Deborah]
I like everything about my piece.

It's very poetic, symbolic
and visually breathtaking.

[Janusz] To me, the grass
is actually more blue than green.

I have no idea how the evaluators
are going to react.

[Katherine]
I feel like I've walked into a fairy tale

or children's book,
looking at these creations.

[Nick] This is Alexander's,

"Disappointment of the Tropics."

[Katherine] This was a way
to transport specimens.

They might go in there
being beautiful, colorful flowers.

but by the time they arrived in Europe,
things wouldn't survive.

Oh.

-Typical Alex.
-I didn't realize that was a lid.

And it's unbelievable.

This is gorgeous.

I love the little curls

on the tendrils and edges of the leaves.

-Beautiful.
-[Katherine] Spectacular.

It really shows a range of skill sets,

with the cane on here, these lines,

and making the lid, a beautiful fit.

The orchid, also beautifully rendered.

[Janet]
I'm engaged by the nuance of the color

[Nick] It looks like a dying flower.

Janusz, this is his work.

This apparently rocks.

-[Nick] All right, so...
-[Katherine] Ooh...

Okay.

Not sure what to make of that.

I really want to just be taken
by the beauty of the plants.

[Nick]
This soil feels strangely realistic.

[Katherine] It's called frit.
It's crushed-up colored glass,

and it's what is actually making
the coloring on the stem and the leaves.

[Janet]
The component pieces are stunning.

I'm struggling a bit on the composition.

Wow!

-Wow!
-[Nick] This is Patrick's, "Blow Ball."

This is a macro view,

an up-close dandelion.

[Katherine]
There's some really great elements

and there's a lot of technique,

but I don't know if it's coming together
as a unified whole.

[Janet] Some of the connections cut away

at some of the realistic intent of it.

But it's visually striking.

[Nick]
This is Deborah's, "Forgotten Potatoes."

I love the humor.

There's a lot of charm.

[Janet] I am always amazed

by where creative minds go.

-I would not have gone to potatoes!
-[laughter]

[Nick] One thing the brief discussed
was capturing the essence of nature.

-Do you think she's done that?
-I think so.

I'm not confused
that these are not potatoes.

[Janet] The diversity of color
and texture, that detail is impressive.

[Katherine] She was definitely worried

that this might look pedestrian,
but she still went with it.

I give her props for that.

This is not pedestrian.

[laughter]

[Patrick] I feel pretty good.

Everything worked out close enough
to what I was expecting.

[Janusz] I don't think my piece concept
is strong.

[Alex] It'd sure be great to win again,
having only won the first one.

[Deborah] I think this is the challenge
for me to win.

This morning we asked you to create
botanical-themed glass art.

It was really incredible and surprising
to see

how you all approach
this challenge so differently

and really invested a lot of yourself
in each of your interpretations.

Patrick, if we could hear you
talk about your work.

I...

picked a dandelion

because they're my daughter's favorite.

She likes to blow on them and...

kick-start life again from a dead flower,

but what I really wanted to do

with that piece,
no matter what flower I picked,

is a macro shot of the flower.

[Katherine] We were really impressed
with all the different techniques.

Not entirely sure
they all came together well,

but it was a really great range

of technical challenges
that you did really well.

-Thank you, Patrick.
-My pleasure.

Janusz, we'd love to hear
about your work.

If I'd had more time
to experiment with color,

which none of us did, of course,
I'd have toned it down a little bit.

I wanted to put movement in there, too.

I made the bowl rock a bit,
a kinetic piece when you move it.

We weren't sure if it was actually
even necessary that it moved, you know?

If that was a pro or a con,
but beautiful execution.

-Thanks, Janusz.
-Thank you.

Alexander, please tell us
a little bit more about your work.

I was really excited
when we received this challenge,

because my partner
is a historian of science

who studies 19th century botany.

Something she's writing about now,

she calls
"the disappointment of the tropics,"

the title of the piece.

I loved the way that you used texture

and color, the detail, particularly
around the top of the glass piece.

It was lovely.

[Katherine]
The realism of your plant specimen

and the execution of the glass elements
was all really well done.

So much so
that I almost kind of wish to see

a little residue
of what might have been the flower,

to kind of maybe give a hint
on why the specimen was being preserved.

-Yes, I think that would be cool.
-[laughter]

That would be great.

[Deborah]
The perfect flower's amazing,

but there's other ways
to look at the world.

Thanks, Alexander.

And Deborah, if you can tell us
about your potatoes.

My piece glamorizes everything
that a flower is not.

A flower is a classic beauty.

It has everything going for it:

color, beautiful scent, great proportions.

It epitomizes life.

But the potato is...

a powerhouse.

To me, it represents otherness and...

those that have been marginalized,
and I...

personally resonate with that theme a lot,
for myself

and for my own work, so...

for its atypical beauty
and it's metaphorical power,

I chose the sprouted potato.

I wouldn't have thought
about going potato in sprout, so...

I have to say the way you speak
about your art is inspiring.

Thank you.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts.

Give us a moment to discuss your work.

Thank you.

[Janusz] In a million years
I'd never think of a potato.

She just keeps coming up
with this... wonderful work.

[Deborah] Alexander's piece

would be the one
I'm going in the boxing ring with.

Potato against orchid.

Thank you for waiting.

While all four of you have delivered
an exceptionally high standard of work,

one of you delivered
the botanical masterpiece

we were looking for.

The detail and technique
were displayed beautifully,

and conceptually, they blew us away.

That glassblower is...

Alexander.

[applause]

-[Nick] Congratulations, Alexander.
-[applause]

-How do you feel right now?
-Awesome.

[laughs]

Didn't know if I was going to have
another win in me, so...

So it feels very good.

And I really liked this challenge too,
so... it's fitting, I guess.

I'm afraid that one of you
has not blown us away.

Dreading who it is,
which one of us is going to leave.

That glassblower is...

Patrick.

Patrick, we would like to say that...

your work in this competition
has gone noticed.

Every week you brought something
different to every challenge,

you have an exceptional skillset
and you've done a tremendous job.

Please say your goodbyes
and exit the hot shop.

-It was a pleasure.
-Pleasure.

Sorry to see you go.

[Janusz] I'm really shocked
that he was eliminated.

[Patrick]
I feel pretty good I made it so far.

I'm happy with what I've done.

Obviously, it wasn't...

enough.

[Deborah] Didn't want Patrick to go.
We really bonded

in our group challenge

and I felt like he had more in him

that could continue to unfold.

Goodbye.

À bientôt.

[applause]

[Janusz] I'm sadder for him
than feeling any relief myself.

You know, we're both fathers,
and our kids are just...

a major part of our lives, obviously.

To our final three,
we'll see you for the next challenge.