USC graduate creates successful business by blowing a unique piece of art out of thin air

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) – A University of South Carolina graduate turned his passion for glass blowing into a successful business. Over 30 years later, he is continuing to share that passion with his community.

One Eared Cow Glass opened their doors in 1991 after the owner, Tom Lockart, said USC dropped the school’s glass blowing program around the time he and two of his classmates were graduating. At the time, there were few graduate schools that offered programs in glass, so the three, soon-to-be graduates took matters into their own hands.

“Back 33-some years ago, there wasn’t really much of an avenue to go and if you could find something it was extremely expensive. So, we started the studio out of college,” Lockhart said.

The original studio was in a barn in Bishopville that belonged to the family of one of Lockart’s business partners. They stayed there for three years before moving the studio to Columbia.

Lockart is the last original owner still with One Eared Cow Glass and though his days are busy, no two look the same. However, most days begin with a very important question.

“What are we making?” Lockart said.

The answer changes daily depending on a variety of factors, including the amount of molten glass that’s ready for use, the quality of that glass and the time frame of orders.

“All those things blend together on a daily basis for us to try to come up with something so at the end of the day we are profitable, successful and everybody’s happy,” Lockart said.

At 2,100 degrees, working with molten glass is an intricate process. Whether they’re creating larger pieces for custom orders, or smaller ones to sell in the studio, the work never stops. Some days Lockart said they create six to seven large glass pieces, while other days they are making 30 to 40 smaller creations.

Ryan Crabtree has worked with Lockart for 19 years and said the work is hard but very rewarding.

“It’s really cool, we’re not sitting behind a desk, we’re hands-on creating artwork for a living and not many people get to say that,” Crabtree said.

Lockart said it’s not just about sharing their art with people, it’s about sharing the process of creating that art. As a result, they open their studio doors for people to watch them work on their one-of-a-kind pieces.

“We realized from the beginning; it was important to us when we saw the process. When we decided to open up a business, we had enough business sense to realize we need the customer to understand the process also. Not just to understand how we make stuff, but to be included in our process, our business, our creations, the making of everything,” Lockart said.

They also offer classes at the studio for anyone interested in glass blowing.

“The people who come in here don’t know anything about it and when they get their hands on it you see their eyes light up. To get that out of them, to see that excitement and enjoy what I do on a daily basis, I love to see that,” Crabtree said.

Lockart said by allowing people to actually see and be a part of the creation process, it gives them a new appreciation for an unconventional art form.

“There’s always some sort of mystery with glass. It’s so foreign to us, but when we finally see it in the process we are just amazed by what it takes to get from kind of a molten-honey consistency, to bright and colorful shapes that we are familiar with to some degree, but had no clue of the process to get to it,” Lockart said.

It’s quite the process, one that Lockart said can be frustrating at times, but it’s the excitement and unpredictability that’s part of what makes glass blowing so unique.

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