Local Woman Creates Art From Bits of Glass

What may appear to one person as shards of glass and discarded musical instruments appears to Susan Schillerstrom as being...broken glass and discarded musical instruments with purpose.

The Downers Grove resident looks at just about any surface as one that could potentially be artfully covered with colorful mosaic made of stained glass, fused glass or recycled tiles.

“Anything with a flat surface is fair play,” she said, noting that she’s not limited to flat. “I found a bowling ball,” she said, which later became a gazing ball for the garden.

Schillerstrom’s work will be part of a Summer Artwalk Beauty and Nature at the Promenade in Bolingbrook on June 11 and 12, and a trunk show at the Morton Arboretum on July 12.

Schillerstrom, whose background is in graphic design, said that she has always been artistic. She worked professionally in the field for about 20 years before returning to school to become a certified occupational therapy assistant. Her current artistic pursuit evolved from her “need to have a creative outlet” while working as an OT assistant, she said.

Schillerstrom is completely self-taught in the stained glass and mosaic work that she’s done for the past four years. “I’ve not had the time or resources to take classes, so I mainly just get books, research on the Internet or just figure things out,” she said.

This makes her work inherently unique. “I haven’t learned it from anyone so it’s all my own creation,” she said. “My work is kind of individual because it’s something I’ve figured out myself.” 

Schillerstrom integrates traditional stained glass techniques, which include cutting specific shapes, with traditional mosaic techniques, which include using tiny pieces of tile.“I am combining two techniques,” she said. “I’m creating what works for me instead of what a studio might teach me.” The results are vivid, eye-catching and sun-catching pieces of art.

An ardent environmentalist, Schillerstrom loves that she has a source for recycled tile, and that much of her work is created from found items. Most of her creations are nature-related. “That’s a huge part of who I am. I help to preserve nature and promote environmental causes so it’s important to me,” she said. 

For instance, she has started creating mosaic-covered birdhouses. “Bluebirds are dying off because their habitat is being encroached upon by the sparrow. So I make birdhouses with the holes the right size for a bluebird to nest,” she said. 

Many of the items that she creates are for display or use outside. This includes birdbaths, garden ornaments and stepping stones. Interior pieces include picture frames, lazy susans and wall hangings. Schillerstrom also has a line of jewelry using dichroic glass.

Several ukuleles and guitars also have come under her spell. The first stringed instrument to which she applied mosaic was a broken ukulele she spotted in someone’s trash. She has moved on to instruments she either finds reasonably priced on eBay, or that people donate to her.  A guitar she recently decorated and sold is her favorite piece of art to date. “It’s because it fuses two of my favorite things: music and art,” she said.           

Schillerstrom loves every step of the involved process leading up to her finished creations. "I like cutting the glass and arranging the glass. I like the colors, the combination of colors. And mostly I like when it’s all done and grouted," she said. "If I’ve used the right-colored glass and the right grout, it shines and sparkles and the colors are more vivid that anything. The light plays on the different glass surfaces.” 

Happy to have discovered her passion, Schillerstrom believes, “People should do what they love. If you think you should try something but don’t have the time, do it anyways. People should do what they love.”

Schillerstrom’s work is carried at local shops and galleries. In addition to the Artwalk this weekend, she will be showing at Art at the Mall at Yorktown on July 16-17. For further information, visit Schillerstrom’s Nature Under Glass Shop