Douglas Bragg- a 31 year old artist and craftsman from Eugene- has been heating, blowing and molding glass for over 8 years. He rents space at the Glass Menagerie on Blair Boulevard where he begins 1.5 hour process, using a torch and a blow tube to turn molten glass into a work of art.

After preheating the glass in a kiln, Bragg begins melting it with a torch capable of producing temperatures over 5,000 degrees. "There are a billion things that can go wrong," says Bragg. "Basically any large project is a bunch of small steps stacked on top of each other. You just have to know the right order."

Bragg says that usually his art starts as a sketch but that his favorite pieces are the ones he produces "off the bat." On this particular day, he attempts to make a marble, something which he hasn't tried in over three years.

Bragg blows air into a small tube in order to give shape to the glass. He says that the tube is a safety precaution because if he was to blow directly into the glass without the tube, there is a potential that the vapors could ignite and be sent back to his lungs.

After the glass has reached its hottest moment, Bragg manipulates the molten ball when it is softest, adding volume with the tube while giving shape with his hands.

Bragg rotates the glass so it does not fall out of shape. He says that even though he's been glowing glass for a long time, he learns new things every day. Glass naturally wants to take a round shape. Ideally, you are supposed to be able to do it just by putting it in the flame.

Again, Bragg rotates the glass. He currently makes custom and stock pipes, but he's thinking of expanding his production. "I'm always looking forward to the future. I nice direction would be functional home décor," he says.

Bragg uses a marble mold to give the glass its final shape.

"I love it when people tell me I have a good imagination," says Bragg. "Because they are seeing this thing that came out of my head and giving me credit for the idea."

Bragg says that a good piece of glass is "anything that makes you want to look at it more.  I want you to pick it up and say "Whoa! How did this happen."