Cannabis and the glass blower

https://www.providencejournal.com/story/news/2021/08/12/how-marijuana-legalization-has-impacted-new-england-glass-artists-pipe-makers-heady-glass-bongs/5456565001/

Glass blowing is one of the oldest art forms that has existed since the 1st century BC. Has remained roughly unchanged.

While most people never really think about the creation process – for cannabis users, glassblowers have been their “low-key rock stars” for several decades.

This is because your bongs and pipes are made by these glass artists and depending on who you buy from, these pieces can get quite expensive.

Because of this, today I decided to write a little about glassblowing and how it became intertwined with cannabis culture and how even the government, through its chilling mania, was persecuting glassblowers everywhere, culminating in the arrest of Tommy Chong.

Yes, the cannabis story is one of the strangest and craziest stories of all.

Let’s crash!

How glassblowers got into the weed game

The intent of this article is not to teach you that glass blowing originated in Syria or that it has been using the same techniques for thousands of years.

Rather, we will take a closer look at the intersectionality of the art form and cannabis culture.

One would think that an art form that is thousands of years old did justice to the cannabis user – a crop that has also endured for thousands of years.

But the truth is that the modern cannabis glass pipe is actually not “that” old. The first smoking devices were made from clay.

You may know it as “Chillum” – and are still sold today.

Other smoking methods “in front of the glass” were stone pipes, wooden pipes, clay pipes and seeds. I’ve met some farmers who used corn stalks to roll their doobies.

The first real iteration of glass pipes used for cannabis can be traced back to the 1960s when an unnamed artist considered making an elaborate smoking device out of glass.

After all, glass didn’t burn like wood or stone and was easier to clean.

It made “sense”.

From patent to ban

It was 17 years before the first glass pipe was patented, but it was during this time that the popularity of glass pipes began to rise. While the drug counterculture still largely consisted of hippies and “beatniks”, the art form found a complete integration into cannabis culture.

In 1977 the first pipe was patented.

Then came Reefer Madness 2.0 – The Raegan Era!

During this time, “health” was the law of the country and DARE campaigns were broadcast on every network and spammed into every school.

Magazines were also popular and served as a “counter-narrative” to the official tripe that was pushed by the government.

It was because of magazines like High Times that glass pipes also began to make their rounds and become an integral part of the smoking experience.

Artists had a new market in which to express their creativity, and stoners had a new way of smoking out art. It was a win-win situation.

And then came the 2003 Operation Pipe Dreams.

When the government was after the artists

If you are new to Operation Pipe Dreams, here is a quick overview.

In 2003, the US federal government targeted allegedly “illegal” companies selling “drug paraphernalia”.

Paraphernalia is just a creepy word for pipes and bongs.

Because most state governments found it ridiculous to condemn glassblowers or businesses that sold glass-related items, the U.S. government tried to condemn people in Iowa and Pennsylvania – where they had strict laws against using the postal system to deliver pipes or had other “utensils”.

Of the 55 targeted facilities, only Tommy Chong was sentenced and imprisoned for nearly a year. He had to surrender over $ 100,000 to the government when he was “confiscated”.

What makes it even more ridiculous is that the government “set it up” and created a fake business and spent months trying to sell Nice Dreams – Chong’s shop – to them.

It was only when the Feds threatened to arrest his family that Chong decided to plead guilty.

Are you talking about “representing the people” … hey, Uncle Sam?

The idea behind the federal raid was to discourage people from using these pipes, but since they arrested a living legend instead, glass pipes and bongs were put on a national and international platform.

Since then, the sale and purchase of pipes has grown into a multi-billion dollar industry and certain artists have elevated their brand to rock star status.

Some works of art can cost up to a million dollars

There are currently two pieces valued at $ 1 million.

For example, The Throne Bubbler was a collaboration between Clinton Roman, Scott Deppe, Darby Holm and Banjo and is listed as this award.

Of course, the actual value of these pieces is subjective as no stoner in their right mind would buy a million dollar piece, but it simply shows how these artists have grown in popularity.

A good glass pipe or bong will definitely cost you a few hundred to a thousand dollars, depending on who you buy it from. If you buy a bong from a famous glass blower, you have to spend a lot of money.

You can check out this list of some of the most expensive bongs in the world.

Fortunately, there are also a large number of “unknown artists” out there who still sell their pieces at affordable prices, and in some cases you can find simple pipes for $ 10 or less

The sticky end result

At the end of the day, the stoner and the glassblower are soul mates. Use your creativity and love of craft to express yourself.

Cannabis is a vehicle for creative people – be it music, literature, film or glass.

One of the reasons I believe these two industries collided so strongly is because of the nature of the stoner who often names his pipe – ascribing a personality to it and using it as a “friend” as opposed to a smoking device.

This created a closeness to the artist, and both of them benefit from the only action of smoking some good old weed.

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