Penn/Fairmount
ABOUT THE TEAM:
Penn/Fairmount is a line of useful and beautiful tableware with a sleek, modern sensibility created by hand at Pittsburgh Glass Center. Glass artist Jason Forck and his team have designed distinct silhouettes in a variety of translucent hues.
Every Penn/Fairmount purchase supports Forck, his team, and Pittsburgh Glass Center, a nonprofit, public-access education center; an art gallery; a state-of-the-art glass studio; a community builder; and a hub for innovation and creativity.
Forck was raised on a small farm in Kansas. He learned early on the value of working with one’s hands. In 2005, he moved to Pittsburgh to pursue an opportunity at Pittsburgh Glass Center where he continues making his sculptures and working as education and creative projects manager.
ABOUT THE SHOP:
Penn/Fairmount evolved from a partnership with Monmade, an initiative focused on driving demand for producer products from Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh Glass Center partnered with Monmade in 2015 to develop a glassware line and pave the way for individual glass artists in our community to create their own glass production businesses. Our first project was designing pendant lighting for Eastside Bond apartments in East Liberty. After many prototypes and hundreds of lights, designer Forck wondered, “What’s next?” He wanted to find a way to reuse the tools and molds to create something new and exciting. The result was Pittsburgh Glass Center’s first line of tableware called Penn/Fairmount.
It took many attempts, a lot of wonky cups, broken glass, and teamwork before he refined the original Inflate and Cinch lines for Penn/Fairmount in 2016. The collection now includes bowls, pitchers, cups, and vases in several silhouettes and nine translucent colors. Each year he adds a new silhouette or color to keep it fresh.
