About Wet Dog Glass

We at Wet Dog Glass are committed to providing our clients with top-notch services and products that range from studio equipment design, fabrication and installation to consultation and technical support. We are specialists in combustion, safety and control systems, so you can count on us to provide you with exactly what you need. We understand the need for efficiency and we put great effort into bringing you products of the highest quality. Since 1996, we have helped glass and ceramic artists around the world to solve problems unique to each situation. When you call on WDG for assistance, we give you all we’ve got!

See below for more details about our History and Philosophy.

History

From an early age Eddie Bernard enjoyed working with his hands and figuring out how things are put together. When he was 10 years old, his mother, an artist working primarily in clay and paper, had an interest in the sawdust fired pottery of Maria Martinez and other Native American potters of San Ildefonso Pueblo, NM, so they traveled to the pueblo to meet the potters in 1983. Upon their return home to Louisiana, they built a small kiln of firebrick in which to replicate the firing process they observed and which produced a very dark black surface that could be burnished with a stone. In 1988, at the age of 15, Eddie began working for Craig McCullen making stained glass panels. At 17 years old, he began apprenticing Paulo Dufour in the stained glass trade, and it was Paulo who introduced Eddie to hot glass. This early interest in glass lead him to School of American Crafts at Rochester Institute of Technology to study glass blowing. While there he had the opportunity to build his first glass melting furnace, and a love affair with building equipment was reignited. In the Spring of 1996, during his last semester of college, Eddie went to the Corning Museum to help install The Studio of the Corning Museum of Glass. He was offered the job as The Studio’s shop technician and also took on the role of stained glass program founder and instructor after graduating with a BFA at RIT. He moved back to Louisiana later that same year and founded Wet Dog Glass, LLC (WDG). In the late 1990’s the company built a handful of raku and cone 10 electric ceramic kilns but maintained a sharper focus on the glass art field. The company quickly became the preeminent glass blowing equipment manufacturer in the United States.

The company resided in New Orleans, LA until the spring of 2008 when we moved to Star, NC. Being located in the rural Piedmont of North Carolina has afforded WDG the opportunity to conduct further research into high efficiency refractories and heat exchange systems, and interactive control systems. The close proximity to the very large and long lived pottery community of Seagrove, NC has allowed WDG to collaborate with potters to design a new line of ceramic kilns.

We at WDG are committed to providing our clients with top-notch services and products that range from studio equipment design, fabrication and installation to consultation and technical support. We are specialists in combustion, safety and control systems, so you can count on us to provide you with exactly what you need. We understand the need for efficiency and so we put forth great effort into bringing you products of the highest quality. Since 1996, we have helped glass and ceramic artists around the world to solve problems unique to each situation.

Philosophy

Since 1996, WDG, LLC has worked with clients to develop and produce the best glass studio equipment money can buy. One of our highest priorities is to research and develop new systems that are more efficient in their energy consumption.

Our products are the culmination of years of experience and comprehension in art glass furnace functionality, ergonomics, insulation, atmosphere control and heat reclamation.

Our small company has a very open work mentality that fosters a dialog stream that flows from the client to the design department to the production floor and back again. It is this approach that enables us to be nimble and to enjoy a continuous improvement business model.

We believe it is our responsibility to deliver the best combination of quality, efficiency, safety, and education that we possibly can. If you are ever passing through our neighborhood, feel free to drop in. We would love to meet you!

Community

WDG’s growth is a reflection of the growth of the fields of glass and ceramic arts. We thank our community of colleagues and clients for our sustained success, and are proud to call this planet home!

WDG appreciates the hard work required to build and sustain communities so that all people receive equal, enriched opportunities in life. As a company and as individuals, we support and volunteer for organizations and community projects.

Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts
CERF+
GreenHill Arts Center
GAS
Haystack Mountain School of Craft
Ox-Bow School of Art
Penland School of Craft
Pilchuck Glass School
Pittsburgh Glass Center
Pratt Fine Arts
Seagrove Area Potters Association
STARworks
YaYa