We were lucky to catch up with Mike Da Ponte recently and have shared our conversation below.

Mike, appreciate you joining us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

From a very young age I always knew I wanted to do something in art, but when I was young I wasn’t entirely sure what that was. I always made an effort to learn many different processes in the creative realm which I think played to my advantage as I got older. In high school graphic design caught my attention because it was a process that helped me to think critically by using principles of design to really challenge my skills and help me adapt to a modern mindset of creativity. Once I began to create things on the computer in class, different teachers noticed and assigned me different jobs like making t-shirt designs for clubs, organizing layouts for handouts and other random jobs that promoted school activities. While design consumed a lot of my time, I also had many interests in the studio art like jewelry making and sculpture, which I explored a lot more in college. Once I discovered glass in college, this really uprooted any future plans of becoming a designer. My professor at the time invited his class to attend a massive glass exhibition that took place at Navy Pier in Chicago, which was called SOFA (sculpture objects functional art). Artists and galleries from all over the world came together for this exhibition to display their current work and this was such an inspiring experience that I knew I wanted to make art for the world to see. The very first year I went to SOFA was in 2009 and I can pinpoint that moment in time as what changed my outlook on what I wanted to do in the long run. I set a goal that some day I would show my work in that exhibition and 6 years later I had my first opportunity to do so.

Mike, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Mike da Ponte and I’m a glass/mixed media artist from the northwest suburbs of Chicago, IL. I learned my process from Illinois State University and graduated in 2012. Since my undergrad experience, I have been teaching glass full time at a high school. My job allows me to continue my practice and exploration with my own body of artwork while educating teens on the many different avenues of creativity that are possible with glass. I have done a lot of commission work for people over the years and I think one of the challenges I face on a daily basis is the fact that I work solo. Glass making often requires a small team of people to make things inside and outside of the hot shop, so my skills are limited to the lack of help I have. While for many this would be a setback, I have really taken a lot of time to figure out ways to achieve different tasks while working solo which has forced me to explore all areas of glass making and not just one. I take a lot of pride in the quality of work I produce and I love working with clients to make their ideas become a reality.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

My biggest objective, in my opinion, is to leave a lasting impression with my artwork that my children will remember as they grow older. This is a major factor in my artistic path, though I wouldn’t say it’s the only one. I’ve always had trouble coming up with the perfect phrases to describe who I am to other people. When I find it difficult to express myself verbally, I can still communicate with others through my artwork. This is a form of therapeutic practice.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

Being able to switch gears and try new things with no one telling you, “you shouldn’t do that.” Taking risks is the better way of looking at it. Sometimes the risk is pushing you so far outside of your comfort zone that you question why you’re doing it in the first place. But in glass a lot of these experiments can turn into amazing accidents leading you into new realms of ideas and concepts. The most rewarding part is having the opportunity to be able to do these kinds of things and potentially being successful in the end. It’s not always a success story, but without this risk and exploration we probably wouldn’t see a lot of the incredible artwork we have seen throughout time, and not just in glass but art overall.

Contact Info:

• Website: Http://www.mikedaponte.com
• Instagram: @dapsglass