Robert Pickard
Founder and CEO of Pickard Artistic Blasting
Robert Pickard, a retired Electrical Engineer, father and grandfather, has become one of the best-known glass-etching artists thanks to his desire to teach and pass along the craft to others.
“Bob” as his friends call him, is known for developing innovative sand blasting techniques as well as mastering many of the older hand tooling techniques which are much less prevalent in modern glass art
Bob has been involved in artistic glass etching since 1977. And he has been passing on his craft through seminars and individual instruction since 1989. He is recognized for his advancements in many sandblasting techniques such as low pressure air brushing, dimensional blasting, glass carving on thin media and the use of acrylic and silicone resists.
Bob realized early on that the art he loves was hindered by a neglect of technological development in commercially available abrasive blasting equipment. So, after opening his studio in 1992, he set out to supply the general population of glass artists with the same innovative equipment he had engineered for himself.
As well as running his own glass art studio “Memories N Glass,” located in Shawnee, Oklahoma, Bob has revolutionized artistic glass etching by developing, manufacturing, and distributing the best line of artistic blasting equipment on the market today.
As the President and CEO of Pickard Artistic Blasting Inc., Bob holds several patents on his abrasive blasting equipment, which is precisely engineered for the artistic glass etching industry.
Bob still blasts daily and continues to make improvements to his blasting equipment, which he laughingly refers to as “Upgrades”.
Whether it’s spending time with visitors to his “Memories N Glass” studio, discussing sandblasting equipment and techniques at trade shows, or teaching in a seminar, you’d be hard pressed to find a more knowledgeable glass etching artist with a greater desire to pass on his craft and share his knowledge with the glass etching community.