Today we’d like to introduce you to Ori Hamburg
Hi Ori, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’ve always known that I like working with my hands, but I never expected that I’d eventually own my very own stained glass studio and get to fabricate and restore leaded windows all day. Getting to this point hasn’t been easy, I’ve had to invest in myself and perpetually push to find opportunities to learn transferable skills which would eventually get me a role as a stained glass apprentice and set me on the path to running my own studio.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Choosing to follow an artistic path as someone who came from a family without any exposure to the arts or financial backing to support me was honestly a shot in the dark. I had no idea what sorts of opportunities lay ahead of me. But I stuck to it, pushed to transfer into an art school and started to learn. Art school sort of peeled away all of the preconceived and romantic notions for what I thought being an artist was and I learned that I could only rely on myself. While in school, I absorbed as many skills as I could (woodworking, metalworking, mold making, painting, etc.) and I eventually became a freelance fabricator after graduation. I got multiple art fabrication jobs, got fired, and eventually found a stained glass studio which hired me without experience. I worked many hours, and stayed late to work on my own projects and eventually became a head fabricator in a matter of a year. I ran full church jobs where we restored hundreds of window panels for churches all over the country and got to a point where I felt I could run my own shop. So I moved to Los Angeles and worked out of my front yard for a few months, saved up enough money to rent out a space and haven’t looked back! Business is booming and I feel so grateful that I trusted myself all those years ago.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Katabi Glassworks is a full service stained glass studio. We do a lot of custom and restoration/repair work for institutions, houses of worship, and residential clients. We repair anything from your bay windows which might have a broken piece or two in them, a window that is bending or buckling, to a stained glass lamp which is starting to fall apart. We also teach workshops once or twice a month and are always open to hosting private sessions whenever there is interest.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://katabiglassworks.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katabi_glassworks/
- Other: https://www.eventbrite.com/o/katabi-glassworks-86260213123
