Lawrence Family Glass Blowers

John and Jim Lawrence, owners of Lawrence Family Glass Blowers.

~story and photos by Chrissy Alspaugh

The soft hum of flame meeting glass echoes through two cozy Nashville studios/shops, Quintessence Gallery on the main drag of South Van Buren Street, and Lawrence Family Glass Blowers around the corner on East Franklin Street. For nearly 60 years, magic has come to life one breath, one flame, one delicate curve at a time. Identical twin brothers Jim and John Lawrence mesmerize visitors with glass blowing artistry—sculpting molten glass into exquisite flowers, intricate figurines, whimsical creatures, and even exact replicas of human arteries.

Passers-by don’t just watch glass objects take shape. They become part of a theatrical experience infused with storytelling, banter, and more than a few laughs.

The brothers’ secret always has been part chemistry and part showbiz. But to understand the fascination with the Lawrence Family Glass Blowers, you’d have to pull up a chair and spend a while listening to the stories about their father’s fascination with glass during his tenure as a Ball State University physical chemist, as well as the ruckus tales of the boys first cutting their teeth traveling with their dad as glass artists in the circus.

Traveling and working alongside their father, Dick Lawrence, the brothers learned early on that the art was only part of the equation. In the carnival world, you didn’t just sell a piece—you sold the experience. They learned to perform, and charisma was as important as craft. Audiences invariably lined up to purchase the piece they’d just watched come to life, and the savvy young entrepreneurs made sure to keep boxes of nearly-identical pieces ready-for-sale behind the counter.

Through it all, Dick immersed the boys in a deep understanding of the chemistry making their art possible.

After high school, the looming Vietnam War prompted the brothers to enroll in college. John planned to make use of his glass blowing dexterity and eye-hand coordination to become a surgeon. Jim began studying to become an architect. But college money dwindled as glass sales soared. John and Jim headed straight to Nashville, convinced a local banker to take a chance granting them an $8,000 loan, and rented a shop. They slept on the floor because $100 monthly apartment rent was out-of-reach.

Living at work in a town lacking entertainment past 6 p.m. prompted the twins to routinely work 16-hour days honing their craft. That was the kind of commitment it took to learn at a trade that many in the industry say takes 25 years to be considered a master glass blower. Not surprisingly, that length of apprenticeship is making glass blowing a dying art, John said.

“It’s tough getting someone to commit to a five-year trades apprenticeship today,” John said. “Now, imagine telling them they won’t even be good at something for 25 years.”

The fascination of an uncommon art lures visitors into the brothers’ two Nashville studios, where the sight of molten glass spinning inside a flame is instantly mesmerizing. Their design repertoire includes more than 800 glass items they create regularly, and the brothers welcome the challenge of custom requests: figurines playing an uncommon sport, replicas of WWII pilots’ particular aircraft, or even the opossum a Brown County tourist once encountered on a getaway. “I thought that opossum would be a one-time thing, but we’ve sold more than 300 of those little buggers,” John laughed.

Still performers at heart, the brothers handily craft breathtaking art seemingly effortlessly, while teasing crowds with banter that their twin is “the ugly one,” who is only “kept around for spare parts.” Jim said the business has brought an unimaginable amount of fun over the past 58 years. He laughed, remembering a story from years ago, when one of John’s customers was dismayed to learn he was not in the store that day. Without missing a beat, Jim changed into one of his brother’s shirts in the back room and reemerged in character as John. And, of course, he made the sale.

Their customers know that beneath the wit and laughter is a reputation of quality, honesty, and the belief that people will always recognize and appreciate something made with care. “Our whole business is built on three things,” Jim said. “Make the highest quality product you can. Sell it at the fairest price you can. And service it like it’s going to outlast you. Do those three things, and you’ll never stop working.”

Though the brothers have formed relationships with thousands of customers throughout their careers, very few know about the scientific side of their business.

Glass blowing plays a crucial role in medical training and research, with many scientific companies and universities employing specialized glass artists who create detailed anatomical models used for educational purposes and surgical planning. Jim said because of their father’s connections to the world of chemistry, the Lawrence Family Glass Blowers have been involved with scientific projects including anatomical models and custom lab equipment since the early years of the business. The brothers have created intricate pieces for pharmaceutical and research institutions, including exact replicas of the human cranial and carotid arteries for nearby Cook Medical.

Jim said while robots and other forms of artificial intelligence are overtaking many industries around the world, glass blowing isn’t one of them. Glass art and scientific creations demand the creativity and precision that cannot be outsourced to machines, he said. The decline of skilled glass blowers isn’t poised to just leave a hole in the art world—it’s a looming crisis for science and medicine, John said.

The brothers still love what they do, though the business pace has slowed slightly. Their father died in 2020, and John said family health issues are prompting him to cut back to working “only fulltime” this year.

As automation and cheap imports continue to shrink the American craft industry, Jim and John remain hopeful that their story—and others like it— will spark something that one day might draw future generations back toward hand-crafted arts. “Things come and go,” Jim said. “At some point, people are going to get tired of buying the same IKEA furniture and start saying, ‘I want something real.’”

Until then, the Lawrence brothers will keep showing up, torches in hand, joyfully sharing their craft and stories with everyone who walks through the door.

“We’re the last of an era,” John says, “but maybe not the last forever.”

Because when you watch fire transform sand into something delicate, lasting, and soulful—maybe, just maybe, you tell someone else.

For more, 812-988-2600 or lawrencefamilyglassblowers.com