Cappy Thompson began her career as a stained glass painter. She later adapted her technique to the painting of blown transparent glass vessels, for which she has established an international reputation. Her focused narrative is based on a highly developed personal iconography. This new mythology features a strong painted line that gives the work a medieval quality unique in contemporary glass.

Cappy's recent projects with Derix mark her return to architectural art glass. Her work can be found in the collections of many contemporary art museums worldwide.

Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, Seattle Washington
This art glass window is part of the Port of Seattle's Terminal Expansion Program for Seatac airport. Seatac is a home to an impressive collection of contempary and regional art. Designed and painted by Seattle artist Cappy Thompson, the window is titled 'I Was Dreaming of Spirit Animals'. The window is 90' x 33' and installed as a functional glass wall in the new concourse.

There are two main processes used in the creation of this window. Much of the artwork is realized by hand painting and firing vitreous enamels to the surface of clear float glass, primarily the black line and shading, as well as the two shades of blue. Also used are pieces of hand blown flashed glass which are laminated to the inside surface of the same float glass panel using a two part silicone process. These pieces have been elaborately acid etched and painted.

All painting on this window was performed by Cappy and a Derix painter at the studio. The vitreous enamel is often mixed with a variety of different solvents and emulsions to allow more than one layer of colors to be applied before firing. At about 1100 degrees, the coatings vitrify and bond permanently to the surface of the glass to produce a rich translucent color.
All the glass is tempered and assembled into standard 1” thick insulated units, and installed as a normal architectural component by the site contractor. The outer panel in each unit is a low E glass, as used throughout the terminal expansion.

Museum of Glass Tacoma, Washington
This large tryptch in the lobby of the new Museum of Glass was executed with a very unique approach.

Cappy painted and fired all the elaborate imagery on clear sheets of hand blown Fremont glass. The sheets were then laminated to 3 large sheets of polished stainless steel. The work is lit from the front, and the light passes through the clear areas and reflects back through the glass again to the viewer. The special lamination process took place in the Museum studios; a Derix artisan traveled there to perform the work. The piece dominates the lobby of the Museum, and shows Cappy's intricate imagery in a glass mural format.

Private residence, Seattle
This window in the home of an art collector illustrates a classic example of an illuminated painting; in this case, as functional divider between the staircase and a small lounge.

Cappy painted all the imagery with vitreous enamels on sheets of a light white opal blown glass, which was then laminated to 3 large sheets of thick tempered float glass.