But before the bits and pieces of their individual lives came together, both had 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 Parham is a Knoxville native and a 1986 graduate of the University of Tennessee (Knoxville) with a baccalaureate in Art History. During her (second) 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.  
 Of all the beautiful things that Ben and Laura have created, the most beautiful are their two young boys. They are the true masterpieces and bring the most joy and satisfaction into their lives.

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Appointments are available. For more information, call 539-0415.