Sunday Evening Art Gallery — John Kiley

February 2, 2023 ~ humoringthegoddess ~ Leave a comment

John Kiley is a fourth generation Seattle native who attended The Pilchuck Glass School and the Penland School of Crafts in North Carolina.Kiley uses primary geometric forms as the architecture for his glass sculptures.His Fractograph series takes a more conceptual approach to the material.Different methods including impact and thermal shock are used to shatter a perfectly polished optic blocks.The sometimes-powerful explosions are filmed in slow motion and exhibited along with the reconstructed blocks.Kiley’s glass sculptures are an exploration of external and internal form: an expression of the relationship that exists between shape and light.

“I strive to create objects that push the material itself beyond its simple inherent beauty. When I look at a finished piece, it should be apparent to me that it could only exist in glass.”’ Kiley explains.

Kiley not only questions which is more beautiful — the whole or its parts, the inside or the outside, negative or positive space, the light, the shadow, or the reflection — but suggests that it is the interaction of all of these characteristics that results in the beautiful sum.

More of John Kiley‘s remarkable glassworks can be found at https://www.johnkiley.com/

Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Vita

December 10, 2022December 9, 2022 ~ humoringthegoddess ~ 11 Comments

Vita of the Vitraaze Glass Shop is a glass painter from Kyiv, Ukraine who decorates teapots, mugs, plates, and various other glassware in striking hues to look like stained glass. Each vibrant piece is hand-painted with non-toxic paint and then heat-set so the designs don’t come off when washed.From floral designs to seasonal motifs, each colorful piece is a functional piece of art.Vita uses non-toxic enamels approved for use with food, then fires the pieces so their designs last as long as possible. They may not be dishwasher safe, but Vita says they’ll hold up to everyday use. I’ve been fond of painting since childhood,” Vita explained.“When I was a student, I read an article about glass painting and decided to try it out. I took a glass bottle and bought special paint for glass in the nearest shop. I then created a very simple design on the bottle, it wasn’t nice at all.”However, Vita didn’t let it discourage her. On the contrary.“I decided to try and perfect it,” she said. “I am crazy about doing everything as well as possible and fell in love with glass painting as I was doing my best to improve. Now, I’ve been at it for 6 years and still love it very much.”The artist usually finds inspiration in nature. “I adore how motifs of the natural world look on tableware and other pieces of décor. It’s a classic.”

More of Vita‘s amazing painted glass can be found at https://www.etsy.com/market/vitraaze_vita and https://mymodernmet.com/hand-painted-glass-mugs-vitraaze/.

Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Davide Salvadore

November 20, 2022December 8, 2022 ~ humoringthegoddess ~ 4 Comments

Dating back to the 1700’s, Murano glassworker Davide Salvadore is the 11th generation on his mother’s side credited with creating glass pieces.Cocoe Series, Colando

At a young age, Salvadore began following his grandfather, Antonio Mantoan, into the furnaces of Murano, first learning how to build the kilns and later working in the studios of Alfredo Barbini, who is often recognized as the ultimate glassmaker of Murano.Chitamarra Series, Romin

Later, he worked as a glassblower in multiple well-known glass studios, learning from each and improving his abilities.Chitamuro Series, Zuali

In 1998, Salvadore made a conscious decision to turn away from traditional functional glass work. At approximately the same time, he began demonstrating his unique murrine technique.Spingarpa Series, Siego

Salvadore’s love of music influenced him to produce a popular series of full sized glass stringed instruments. Each series is named a unique name he created.Tiraboson Series, Steso

Salvadore’s process takes longer than most would imagine and has many separate steps.Bechino Series, Bascila

Salvadore thinks about the piece he wants to create, settles in his mind on the idea, the colors and shape and then over the following week collects the glass canes and makes the murrines specifically for that piece.Chitamarra Series, Leca

Murrines are created by stretching a compact mass of hot glass into a long, narrow, multicolored cane. Using his unique process, Salvadore cuts these canes into thin slices which are incorporated into his work in a variety of different shapes and sizes.Chitamuro Series, Ingaua

Then they go into the annealing oven to prepare them to be added to the form being blown. When the glass sculpture is fully cooled, it goes to the cold shop for further detailed work, which makes every piece a one-of-a-kind piece.Cocoe Series, Lupula

More of Davide Salvadore’s amazing creations can be found at https://www.davidesalvadore.com/.

Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Amber Cowan

July 16, 2021 ~ humoringthegoddess ~ 12 Comments

Amber Cowan is an artist and educator living in Philadelphia.She is a faculty member of the glass department of Tyler School of Art, where she received her MFA in 2011 in Glass/Ceramics.Cowan’s sculptural glasswork is based around the use of recycled, upcycled, and second-life American pressed glass.She uses the process of flameworking, hot-sculpting and glassblowing to create large-scale sculptures that overwhelm the viewer with ornate abstraction and viral accrual.

With an instinctive nature towards horror vacui (filling of the entire surface of a space or an artwork with detail), her pieces reference memory, domesticity and the loss of an industry through the re-use of common items from the aesthetic dustbin of American design.The primary material used for her work is glass cullet sourced from scrap yards supplied by now defunct pressed glass factories as well as flea-markets, antique-stores and donations of broken antiques from households across the country.Cowan uses these found pieces to create remarkable one-of-a-kind objects that reference the rise and fall of US glassware manufacturing, while simultaneously offering a new narrative.More of Amber Cohen‘s amazing glasswork can be found at https://ambercowan.com/.

Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Martin Blank

May 16, 2021May 16, 2021 ~ humoringthegoddess ~ 15 Comments

Martin Blank is one of North America’s premiere figurative glass sculptors with a style quintessentially his own.

Creating tension between sculptural forms that evoke compelling landscapes revealed by the juxtaposition of sculptural elements, Blank’s work is about carving space.Martin Blank was born August 29, 1962 and received his BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design in 1984.

That same year, Blank moved west to begin his professional career in Seattle, working at the center for studio glass and learning from the driving force behind it, Dale Chihuly.Blank worked on the Chihuly team, bringing his infectious enthusiasm and courageous desire to push the material for several years, all the while establishing his own contributions to the glass movement.Whether it is a collection of flower blossoms, a monumental abstract installation, or a figurative sculpture, Martin Blank’s hot sculpted glass is made with a combination of technical exactitude and creative exuberance.

His working relationship with glass is an intimate one, as he wears heat protective clothing, gets very close, and employs his entire body while molding the molten material.

Intuitive and deliberate, he is nonetheless open to enhancing his visual vocabulary with the happy accidents of glasswork.

More of Martin Blank‘s amazing glasswork can be found at https://www.martinblankstudios.com/

Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Daniela Forti

September 21, 2017May 13, 2021 ~ humoringthegoddess ~ 5 Comments

http://www.danielaforti.it/english/works.htm

Jellyfish

Sunday/Monday Evening Art Gallery Blog — Latchezar Boyadjiev

September 4, 2017September 4, 2017 ~ humoringthegoddess ~ 3 Comments

Latchezar Boyadjiev was born in Sofia, Bulgaria, and educated the the Academy of Arts in Sofia and the Academy of Applied Arts in Prague, Czechoslovakia, where he studied with Professor Stanislav Libensky, one of the most prominent glass artists of our time.

Boyadjiev came to the United States in 1986, where he taught at the California College of Arts and Crafts.

Boyadjiev begins his sculptures by creating clay sculptures with perfect smooth surfaces and details

Next follows a series of positive and negative molds, a time-consuming and detail-oriented process that leads to the final plaster positive that will determine the outcome of the sculpture.

These new glass sculptures are cast into yet another mold, and later annealed, partially ground and polished.

Boyadjiev creates amazing glass sculptures that are sensual and fluid, a true joy to behold.

More of Latchezar Boyadjiev‘s glass sculptures can be found at http://www.latchezarboyadjiev.com/.

Sunday/Monday Evening Art Gallery — Ercole Barovier

February 20, 2017February 21, 2017 ~ humoringthegoddess ~ 1 Comment

Ercole Barovier (1889-1972) was the son of Benvenuto Barovier and a member of a centuries-long lineage in the family company, Vetreria Artistica Barovier & C. founded in 1295.

He was named the artistic director of the company in 1926, and quickly rose up the ranks of the family business.

After becoming sole proprietor in 1936, he merged his family’s company with the Toso family to become Barovier & Toso in 1939.

Over the course of his 50-year activity, he invented numerous decorative techniques which contributed significantly to the renovation of art glass.

From the beginning of the Thirties, he dedicated himself entirely to experimenting with new multi-colored effects, in particular he perfected the colorazione a caldo senza fusione technique (staining heat without fusion) which he first used in 1935-36.

He was active for fifty years in the company, and amassed a portfolio of no fewer than 25,000 designs.

Barovier’s work is part of many major museums’ collections around the world.

More of Ercole Barovier’s work can be found Ercole Barovier.

Sunday Evening Art Gallery Blog — Stained Glass

June 26, 2016August 3, 2016 ~ humoringthegoddess ~ 8 Comments

“…I’m innocent still — inside me are stained glass windows that have never been broken — and when I see your light it stains my soul with color …”

John Geddes, A Familiar Rain

Sunday Evening Art Gallery Blog — Dale Chihuly

April 17, 2016July 19, 2016 ~ humoringthegoddess

You use a glass mirror to see your face; you use works of art to see your soul. ~ George Bernard Shaw

Dale Chihuly (born September 20, 1941), is an American glass sculptor whose work in glass led to a resurgence of interest in that spectacular medium.

Chiluly graduated in 1965 from the University of Washington where he first was introduced to glass while studying interior design, then an M.S. in sculpture in 1967 from the University of Wisconsin, where he studied glassblowing with Harvey Littleton.

He received an MFA from the Rhode Island School of Design, then worked at a renowned glassblowing workshop in Italy where he observed the team approach to blowing glass, which is critical to the way he works today.

In 1971, Dale Chihuly cofounded Pilchuck Glass School in Washington State.

The technical difficulties of working with glass forms are considerable, yet Chihuly uses it as the primary medium for installations and environmental artwork.

Although Chihuly lost the use of his left eye in a car accident in 1976, his work with assistants has been nothing short of phenominal.

The artist professed, “Once I stepped back, I liked the view,” and pointed out that it allowed him to see the work from more perspectives and enabled him to anticipate problems faster.

More of Dale Chihuly‘s fantastic glassworks can be found at http://www.chihuly.com.

Sunday Evening Art Gallery Blog — Architecture in Blue

February 21, 2016July 20, 2016 ~ humoringthegoddess ~ 4 Comments

I was blue, just as blue as I could be
Ev’ry day was a cloudy day for me
Then good luck came a-knocking at my door
Skies were gray but they’re not gray anymore

Blue skies
Smiling at me
Nothing but blue skies
Do I see

Bluebirds
Singing a song
Nothing but bluebirds
All day long

Never saw the sun shining so bright
Never saw things going so right
Noticing the days hurrying by
When you’re in love, my how they fly

Blue days
All of them gone
Nothing but blue skies
From now on

I never saw the sun shining so bright
Never saw things going so right
Noticing the days hurrying by
When you’re in love, my how they fly

Blue days
All of them gone
Nothing but blue skies
From now on

Lyrics by Irving Berlin

Sunday Evening Art Gallery Blog — René Lalique

January 31, 2016July 20, 2016 ~ humoringthegoddess ~ 6 Comments

René Lalique (April 6, 1860 – May 5, 1945) was a master jeweller and glass designer during the Art Nouveau period.

His superior talent and creativity evolved over time and he developed his style to such an extent that he was able to dominate the Art Deco jewelry and glass market as well.

He designed an array of beautiful pieces — glass perfume bottles, jewelry, vases, tableware, bottles, lighting, figurines, and in his later years, car hood ornaments.

In the 1920s , his style morphed from the Art Nouveau nature-inspired forms, to more streamlined pieces to suit the Art Deco aesthetic.

Lalique’s glass pieces became more opalescent, produced by adding phosphates, fluorine and aluminum oxide to glass in order to make it opaque, and by adding tiny amounts of cobalt to produce an internal blue tint.

His work passes the level of everyday to rare and extraordinary.

More of René Lalique‘s exquisite glassworks can be found at http://www.renelalique.com.

Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Paperweights

August 16, 2015 ~ humoringthegoddess ~ 2 Comments

From the moment paper was invented, there was a need for paperweights.

Many objects were used to weigh flyaway papers down.

Obviously, rocks, bricks, and tree branches didn’t work.

So glass paperweights were created.

Some of the earliest paperweights were made in Venice in the 1840s.

The Bohemians improved upon the techniques of the Venetians, and also incorporated the aristry of the French, who really brought the art of the paperweight into full flower.