Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Carol Milne. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Carol thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

I knit with glass. But I don’t knit with HOT glass. It’s an indirect process where I knit with wax, make a mold around the wax, melt the wax out, put the mold in a kiln and melt glass into the space where the wax was.

Let me just say that glass does not want to do this. In fact, when I first began creating knitted glass, I was told it wasn’t possible. I could have given up at that point, and chosen an easier route. Instead, I took on the challenge.

As it turned out, it took a lot of mistakes to make knitted glass possible. No one had done this before, and there was no guidebook. Also since every piece I make is one-of-a-kind, they each present new opportunities for failure. My work still fails sometimes. But at least now I am making educated risks based on past errors.

If I’d been afraid to take risks, I’d never be where I am today.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I am the lone pioneer in knitted glass. Likely Joseph Campbell set me down this road with his quote “Follow your bliss”. I’ve always been a maker, but I never considered it was possible to be a full-time artist and I had absolutely no interest in being an entrepreneur. My interests progressed from fiber art, to Landscape Architecture, to art in the landscape, to sculpture, to glass. And now, for over 20 years, I’ve been knitting glass.

My work consists of sculptural objects in glass, mostly knitted, many displayed as “works in progress” with knitting needles in them. My clients include art collectors, but are mostly knitters who like to see their craft (the work in progress) put on a pedestal. That always makes me laugh. The pieces are “unfinished”: celebrating the ACT of creation. The structure of the knitting, the looping, the connection, the act of making has always been more important to me than the finished product.

If art is a conversation, I am proud to be an innovator rather than an imitator. And to have nudged the boundaries of what is possible in my medium,

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist is often the least rewarding aspect as well.

There is no one telling me what to do. That’s great!

The upside is I can work on whatever I want to work on, whenever. The downside is that there’s no one else to do any of the tasks, there’s only me.

And there are lots of tasks besides the making of the work. I contact galleries. I work with clients. I build and pack crates.
I ship my work. I take my own photographs. I pay bills. I answer emails. I strategize. I document what I make and where it is. I keep track of deadlines.

It’s like juggling.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

Everyone is creative, we just manifest it in different ways.

And certain types of creative work don’t have a job pipeline or funding associated with them. This certainly turns many talented people away from this type of work. But many creatives can’t keep themselves from creating. Everything in life becomes an art project. They are driven to create without thoughts of monetization, or eating, or housing, or health insurance or other practical considerations.

Life is short, art is long. It might take years for genius to emerge. Or it might never emerge at all.

I am very successful as an artist, but I could not support myself with my art alone. According to google, only 10% of artists can.

My husband has been my “Medici”. Maybe you should consider being a Medici for an aspiring creative?

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.carolmilne.com
• Instagram: @carolmilneart
• Facebook: Carol Milne Artwork
• Linkedin: Carol Milne
• Youtube: Carol Milne Studios

Image Credits

Carol Milne