In a glass, brightly

This “Ringed Oscillum” reflects the surrounding trees in Benson's yard. Plastic cut into rings is the base onto which mirrors are glued on each side.

This “mirrorage” combines paint and colored mirrors on a plexiglass base, reflecting a kaleidoscope of colors on its 3-D surface.

Mirror artist Bob Benson is reflected in one of the mirrors of the tree he created in the yard of his Glen Burnie home. Fellow artist and welder Rick Ames created the tree's structure.

The 21-foot Universal Tree of Life at the American Visionary Art Museum is decorated with thousands of pieces of mirrors. It's a popular subject for photo students and tourists.

Bob Benson works in his living room with finished mirror art and pieces of cut mirror, the building blocks of his art.

Twelve years ago when Bob Benson saw a single strand of mirrors in a friend's yard blowing in the breeze, he remembers thinking, “Boy, that has possibilities.” Since then, Benson has turned those possibilities into mirrored creations of all shapes and sizes, from jewelry as small as a locket to the 21-foot mirror tree outside the Visionary Art Museum, where more of his artwork with artist collaborator Rick Ames is on display.

Benson's home sparkles in a kaleidoscope of colors.

“Mirrorages,” a combination of paint and colored mirrors on a plexiglass base, adorn his living room along with several other designs.

In other rooms, two infinity mirrors 11/2 inches deep create the illusion of much greater depth.

Outside, two mirrored trees made with rows of one-half- to four-inch-long mirrors glued back-to-back dangle in varying lengths from the metal branches and jingle like a chorus of crystal glasses.

The basic building blocks for Benson's work include a cutting board, a glass cutter, a pair of convex pliers, quarter-inch thick mirror, 40-pound fishing filament and a highly adhesive glue.

Benson is passionate about his art and shares his self-taught technique by giving workshops at his home and at the Visionary Art Museum.

“Many people who come to the workshop say they don't have creative ability. They find out they're wrong; they create beautiful things and they can see how easy it is to do it.”

For more information, go to his website, shinyhappythings.com.