Michael Schmidt and Sonia Rhea

Artist's Statement
Michael Schmidt and Sonia Rhea are a husband and wife team who began collaborating in glass in 1984. They live in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains in Northern California. Michael makes the glass beads for the jewelry that Sonia designs and creates. Sonia designs the color interiors for the paperweights and sculptures that Michael creates.

Their studio is known for their unusually shaped, brightly colored paperweights, sculptures and glass bead jewelry. All elements contained in the work - from hand drawn beads and cane to the hand blown plates - are designed and handcrafted by them. No molds are used and as a result each piece is unique in size and shape.