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Our Blog
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Bits and
pieces of colored – or stained – glass brought Laura Goff and
Ben Parham together. They met in a stained glass studio. Each had a dream of owning a stained glass studio.
Within one year, they had turned that mutual dream into a
reality. State of the Art, Inc. Stained Glass Studio opened in
April 1990. Since that time, they have created tens of thousands
of stained glass windows. State of the Art, Inc. has completed church projects in Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, and Tennessee. For a complete reference click on the link below.
Both Ben and Laura have a strong faith background and a thorough knowledge of stained glass. Ben is a minister's son who grew up in West Texas. He first worked with stained glass when he was about thirteen in his father's church. "It had beautiful old stained glass windows." Ben says. "I wanted to know how they were built." Ben has a very inquisitive mind and taught himself how to manufacture stained glass. After that, Ben went to work at three studios to hone his skills and knowledge.
Laura Goff is a Knoxville native and a 1986 graduate of the University of Tennessee(Knoxville) with a baccalaureate in Art History. During her senior year, Laura was an international student and spent six months backpacking through sixteen European countries. It was there that she 'discovered' stained glass. "When I was in Europe, I saw many beautiful windows," she says "I realized that stained glass was my 'calling' in life. I wanted to design and fabricate stained glass windows the size of walls - walls of glass." After returning to the states, Laura worked at three studios to fine tune her artistic skills.
Although Ben and Laura can work any position in the
studio, the system that works the best for them is that
Ben handles sales and oversees production and
installations, while Laura is the primary artist and
oversees the office. They have a staff of eight who
manufacture what Laura designs.
Located on Unicorn Drive, State of the Art, Inc occupies
a 5500 square foot facility. The business hours are
Monday through Friday 8 am – 5 pm. After hour appointments are available. For more
information, call 539-0415 in Knoxville or toll free
888-539-0415.
Laura Goff Parham's Resume
Click here for a
list of references
Appointments are
available. For more information, call 539-0415.
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