About

The Story of HOT SHOP GLASS

The time was right in early 2005 when several local glass artists met to brainstorm the idea of creating a community based glass blowing facility.   Just a few weeks later they developed a plan and found the perfect spot: a dilapidated 1880’s former stable in downtown Racine.  With a little vision, and a lot of hard work, dreams became reality.  Beautifully restored, this jewel became home to HOT SHOP GLASS, a state of the art glass blowing studio and gallery!  More than a decade later the studio is as active as ever under the direction of founder/artist Amanda Cosgrove Paffrath and co-owner/artist Daniel Sviland.  Glass blowing classes, gallery sales and commission work keep the team at Hot Shop Glass busy!

Expansion in 2019!  Glass Fusing Studio

Taking Daniels experience in stained glass, a kiln gifted to us knowing we would put it to good use and the determination to revamp our 1,000 square foot ‘storage’ space, we created a ‘warm’ glass studio — where the community can learn about glass fusing and create their own glass art.  Our glass fusing studio is the perfect compliment to the ‘hot shop’ side of our facility

Amanda Cosgrove Paffrath & Daniel Sviland Summer 2016 Photo by Camela Langendorf, Varitay Studios

The Team at Hot Shop Glass

Daniel Sviland, Artist/Instructor & Co-Owner

Daniel’s love of glass began with stained glass at a very young age, bringing touches of color to the windows of his family home in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Torch work followed and Daniel made beautiful glass beads to adorn his wife, Tina.  With a career as a bar & restaurant manager, Dan began glass blowing as a hobby.  For many years he has been dipping into the crucible to create blown glass barware, bowls, vases and home accent pieces.  Daniel has been working and learning under some great artists including:  Lance Friedman, Shannon Jane Morgan, William Gudenrath, Boyd Sugiki, and Lisa Zerkowitz.  Being fortunate enough to take in the sights of the world while in the Air Force, Daniel has a strong vision for his glass endeavors of the future.  Daniel enjoys the teaching aspects of Hot Shop Glass as well as the ability to give back to the community through donations and support for Veterans Glass Blowing Day.  He has been on the team of the Fall Glass Pumpkin Festival at the Morton Arboretum, just west of Chicago, since it’s inception in 2010.  Daniel was an active studio renter at Hot Shop Glass since 2012 and in mid 2016 he became co-owner of Hot Shop Glass when founding owner Doug Chaussee retired.   Dan keeps the studio equipment in tip top shape and loves to share his glass experience with visitors of all ages.

Amanda Cosgrove Paffrath, Artist/Instructor & Co-Owner, Founder

An art lover since childhood, Amanda took her first formal art class at the Racine Art Museum’s Wustum campus at age 5, began creating beaded jewelry and was introduced to glass blowing as a high school student of Dave Drewek at The Prairie School.  Amanda took several semesters of glass sculpture in college while earning a degree in Sociology and Social Welfare from UW Madison in 1989.   For ten years she worked as an advocate for battered women & their children, all the while creating jewelry and blowing glass whenever she could.  In 1997 she took a chance on a dream and opened Funky Hannah’s Beads & Art.  In 2005 another dream became reality when she collaborated with other glass artists to open a public access glass blowing facility and gallery – Hot Shop Glass.  She now spends time running the businesses, teaching glass bead making and glass blowing, and carving out as much time as she can to create her own art!  Her work is in collections throughout the United States, Europe and South America.  Amanda has volunteered for many social justice causes and is an advocate for the art scene in Downtown Racine.  She lives just north of downtown with her two kids and husband singer/songwriter Mark Paffrath.

Jeremy Hansen, Artist/Instructor

Since he was three years old he dreamt of being an artist.  By the time he was 12 he knew that ceramics was where he wanted to focus his creativity.  In high school Jeremy won numerous awards every year and in 2012 he headed to Alfred University in upstate New York to pursue his dream at the college level.  It was here that he discovered glass, and there was no turning back.  Jeremy loves being challenged by the craftsmanship required to perfect techniques in glass blowing. His work often captures a duality between light and dark, with a focus on form.  Jeremy is known to make stunning glass pieces using old car parts as molds to blown into.  He and fiancee Camrie work as a team in the shop & life, living with their two dogs and two turtles in their new home on the south side of Racine.

DeAnna Poelmann, Artist/Glass Fusing Studio Manager

Creativity and craftsmanship have come together in many areas of Dee’s life…from her many years as a scout leader, cake constructor at O&H bakery and designer/instructor on staff at Funky Hannah’s.  DeAnna is the newest member of the team at Hot Shop Glass, taking on the role as Glass Fusing Studio Manager.  It’s here you will find her organizing, firing kilns and cheering on the creativity of guests.  New to the glass world, Dee created in studios in Door Co and Madison, learning from Dan & Amanda and the teams there before opening our facility.  She continues to be the biggest cheerleader for her adult children – one in law enforcement, following in his father’s footsteps, and her creative scientist daughter currently working toward her doctorate.  She and her husband live in Franksville and love our downtown.

Our Town

The Racine community has an interesting history of commitment to glass as an artistic medium from the early days of the art glass movement to today. In 1969, The Prairie School, a private K-12 day school, created a hot glass shop as part of its art department under the direction of Kent Ipsen and David Drewek. Today the school maintains the popular glass art program for students from 7th grade through high school. Racine is home to the nationally renowned Racine Art Museum (www.ramart.org) with an impressive collection of glass in its permanent collection. ‘The Johnson Family Chandelier’ by Dale Chihuly hangs prominently in the center of the downtown headquarters of Johnson Financial.  Several art galleries, jewelers and a potter call downtown Racine home.  Hot Shop Glass opened as a public access studio to build on this community tradition and appreciation of hot glass!  Located on the shore of Lake Michigan, between Milwaukee & Chicago, Hot Shop Glass & Downtown Racine has become a destination for art lovers throughout the midwest and beyond.

View of Downtown Racine from the harbor.

See why we are the hottest place downtown! Shop our gallery or pick up gift certificates for classes!