Cathy Claycomb

Some say their art fills a hole in their soul. For Cathy Claycomb, her artistic career started more than 20 years ago by filling a hole in her wall.

“We were building a second-floor master suite, and I wanted a stained glass window at the top of the stairs,” she says. “I told the contractor the size of the opening I wanted and enrolled in beginning classes at a stained glass shop.”

Cathy started to develop her signature stained-glass techniques in 1994, a few years after the window installation in her home.

“I started as a fine art oil painter,” she says. “During a tour at Kokomo Opalescent Glass factory in Kokomo, I fell in love with glass. I am inspired by the glorious color, how it could be worked together, and particularly the headglass, which is the leading edge as it comes through the rollers in its molten state. The epiphany of that part of the glass being my new ‘canvas’ sent me on my way.”

Cathy says her work explores nontraditional and one-of-a-kind materials and developing the engineering necessary to push the boundaries of their use.

“The integrity of fabrication is by far the most interesting facet of my work,” she says. “I am fascinated with the problem-solving aspects of the materials.”

When not creating her own work, Cathy teaches it.

“Except for my students, no one does stained glass as I do,” she says. “If you are familiar with my work or classes, you know my glass usually contains an engineering challenge. I use each one to introduce a new look, a technique that pushes the envelope of what is already on the market, or a new design.”

Her initial work filled a hole in her wall, which led to a career that clearly fills her soul.