Ulysses Cylinders Public Lecture

by Fiona Byrne

In the lead up to the opening of the Ulysses Cylinders exhibition by Dale Chilhuly and Seaver Leslie with Flora C. Mace and Joey Kirkpatrick a lecture was held at Dublin Castle. This lecture looked at the making of the exhibition, glass in Ulysses and also gave an insight into why the artists and organisers decided, almost forty years after the exhibition’s original conception, to recreate this iconic show.

The evening began with introductions from Paula Stokes and Róisín de Buitléar, who have both been instrumental in getting this exhibition to Ireland for its very fitting launch to coincide with the Bloomsday festivities. A screening of the making process of these beautiful pieces took place and the complexities of the artistic process were clear. These pieces have been lavished in gold, had delicate and intricate glass drawings melted into their surface, and then skilfully blown to their final shape. This labour intensive process encapsulates the love and effort on the part of everyone on this project to make the vision of the Ulysses Cylinders a reality.

The passion for the project is infectious. Seaver Leslie gave a wonderful talk about his role in the project and his respect for his fellow artists, including Joyce himself, is worn on his sleeve. His modesty is such that he comes across as a man who is proud to have been allowed to be part of this project and not as one of its main characters. However, once he began to speak you can feel the connection and depth of knowledge that he has for his subject matter.

He stressed the links with Ulysses and Joyce that go beyond a mere visual representation of the book. ‘Proportion is everything in the making of art’, Leslie tells us, echoing the harmonics of proportion in Ulysses. The joy of discovery also links these two artists we learn as Leslie recounts the story of finding a description of glass blowing in Ulysses and describes the emotion and pride he felt at his discovery. This is something which translates to the objects in the exhibition, as Róisín de Buitléar pointed out, you have to walk around each piece to get the full picture, you have to actively seek it.

Relationships are important in this project and ownership is not seen as an issue. Leslie expresses how all art steals and borrows inspiration from others. This exhibition is about collaboration and creation, using the ideas and talents of a group to push the art form to new levels. His collaboration with Chihuly began a long time ago when Leslie first encountered Chihuly working the hot work shop in college. He described how Chihuly’s vibrancy attracted an entourage of fun, creative people.

The contrast between the more singular process of a painter and this very team orientated process of glass blowing served to draw Leslie in to the world of Chihuly. He describes himself as being hidden in a forest and Chihuly being out there causing a storm. I for one am glad he chose to come out of his metaphorical hiding place and add his talents to the Ulysses Cylinders project.

Soul is the word which occurred again and again, finding something deep and essential within art, taking it, and making it your own. Leslie leaves us with the thought that Ulysses is a spiritual book and not to be daunted as, ‘you will find what you need’ from it.

After Leslie has spoken Dr. Luke Gibbons takes us ‘Through the glass darkly’ in his talk about the importance of glass in Joyce’s writing. He tells us that Joyce asked us to look at the glass and not just through the glass. To illustrate this he described the first scene of the Dubliners where there is a young boy looking up at the stained glass windows in a church.

Joyce used glass as a carrier of meaning in various ways, once saying that ‘only a transparent sheet separates me from madness’. Gibbons informs us of the fortuitous meeting of Joyce with Thomas Pugh of Pugh’s glass manufacturers. In Pugh he found a man who had claimed Ulysses as a seminal work but who operated outside of the academic circles, this, Gibbons tells us, was Joyce’s intended audience.

Though if seems artistic collaborations can sometimes go awry. Gibbons tells us of the mix up with a commission involving the artist Matisse who was asked to illustrate Ulysses. However misunderstanding the commission he illustrated Homer's Odyssey instead, leaving Ulysses without illustrations.

This project has had its set back also. Thirty nine years ago a tragic car accident stopped the original exhibition in its tracks and resulted in Chihuly losing the sight of his left eye.  Today the Ulysses Cylinders exhibition is on display at Dublin Castle after a long time in the making. This beautiful collection of objects holds more stories than those illustrated on their surface. They are alive with narratives waiting to be unlocked by the viewer.

GSoI Dublin Events 17th of June _ #chihulysses

To celebrate the arrival of Dale Chihuly in Dublin, the GSoI is hosting a number of events in the city on June 17^th to coincide with his lecture and exhibition of the ‘Ulysses Cylinders’ at Dublin Castle. 

We hope that our satellite events will encourage even more of you to come and make a day of this event. Follow #chihulysses on facebook and twitter to keep up with events as they happen. 

After the lecture at Dublin Castle we will also be hosting an informal get-together with drinks, food and a small glass display for anyone interested at Bagots Hutton Bar (28 South William Street, 15min walk away from Dublin Castle) which will be a lovely chance to catch up with old friends and maybe make some new ones. 

 Here’s what will be happening on the day:

Historical Glass at the National Museum of Decorative Arts

Debbie Dawson will lead a group around the Visible Storage section of Collins’ Barracks. Debbie will look at the historical collection which consists of Irish, American and European glass dating from the 18th to the 20th Century. Traditional collecting centered on the industrial manufacture of Belfast, Cork, Dublin and Waterford in the late 18th to mid 19th Century. Debbie will also discuss the important collection of high quality Irish/Irish-related contemporary works that were purchased in association with the Crafts Council of Ireland.

The stained glass windows of St. Teresa’s Church

Peadar Lamb will give a talk on the series of stained glass windows in St. Teresa’s Church on Clarendon Street, Dublin. The stained glass windows date back to the 1960’s; some of which were executed by the Abbey Stained Glass Studio. In 1989 a series of windows for the nave were commissioned and executed by Irish artist Phyllis Burke. The windows depict scenes ranging from of the Resurrection to portrayals of various saints.

The Blaschka Collection at the Museum of Natural History

Emma Bourke will lead a tour of the Blaschka glass models of sea creatures in the Museum of Natural History. This unique collection of Blaschka glass is one of the largest in the world and is still displayed in its original 19th century cabinets Researcher of Blaschka glass and trained as a scientific lampworker, Emma has an intuitive understanding of this work. At 3pm she will lead a group up to the restricted third floor balcony, where she will explain the importance of these pieces to our national collection, the creation of the work and the restoration of the exhibits. Spaces are limited on this tour so registration is essential to be guaranteed a space, contact emma.glasssocietyofireland@gmail.com to reserve a space. 

COLLECT London 2014

Kari Hakonsen - blown, cut and polished glass

Earlier this month London’s Satchi Gallery was once again home to ‘The International Art Fair for Contemporary Objects’, better known to everyone as ‘Collect’. A weekend trip across the pond to London is a bit of an extravagance for most at this busy time of year but since I’m now living a short(ish) train journey away I thought I’d share some of this year’s glassy highlights with you.

One of the very first exhibits featured Scandinavian glass work, including this beautiful transparent blown glass by Kari Hakonsen. Glass is never the most represented material at craft shows like this but what it lacks in quantity it makes up for in quality (then again maybe we’re just biased). 

Steffan Damn

Some familiar names from the UK and elsewhere pop up every year at collect: Danish artist Steffen Dam and his impossibly realistic hot sculpted jellyfish jars still fascinate me even more now I know how many stages and intricate processes creating them requires. Katherine Coleman, one of the best known glass engravers in the UK had some of her beautiful, optical vases on display and across the room another big name on in UK glass, Burno Romanelli showed some super precise and expertly polished kiln work.
  

Katharine Coleman - wheel-engraved crystal

Bruno Romanelli - Kilncast and polished glass

Unfortunately there wasn’t much in the way of an Irish glass representation this year. To the best of my knowledge we can only claim Dubliner Edmond Bryne, who is now based in the UK, as the sole Irish glass participant. Edmond, represented by the FLOW gallery, displayed a number of his signature textured mould-blown forms.  Inside the catalogue cover was Scott Benefield’s familiar canework advertising the Scottish Gallery but the actual work was not on display. 

Edmond Byrne 

Scott Benefield occupying the first page of the catalogue

Pia Raeymaekers 

Chantal Delporte 

'The Flanders Gallery' featured some interesting work from Belgian glass artists Pia Raeymaekers and Chantal Delporte. I thought Chantal’s work was particular interesting; she seems to be using pate-de-verre and lost-wax casting to create very detailed, natural looking forms. On some of them the frit seems to blend into the solid cast glass, creating an impressive mix of texture on the one sculpture. I would love to know how she does it.

Niyoko Ikuta - cut and laminated sheet glass 

One of my favourite pieces was from Japanese glass artist Niyoko Ikuta. Made of cut and laminated sheet glass, it caught the light beautifully and provided an interesting view from all angles. 

Niyoko Ikuta  (front view)

Some exhibits at 'The Gallery' at London Glassblowing 

The vast majority of the glassworks on show were shown in special exhibit from The National Glass Centre and ‘The Gallery’ at London Glassblowing. There were far more delightful objects on show than I could even photograph. As always there were some fantastic examples of contemporary jewellery in a huge variety of materials, ceramics ranging from the sculptural to the functional, metalwork, finely crafted wood, textiles and so much more. I really recommend a visit next year for inspiration and visual delights abound and with any luck maybe there’ll be a few more familiar pieces from our friends and members too! 

Louis Thompson - DNA Markers: Thermodynamics hot

London Glassblowing's exhibition space 

Written by Meadhbh McIlgorm
GSoI Media Officer 

GSoI: Looking back on Orientate (Part 2)

Mmmmmmmm... So lunch was delicious, all were in agreement on that point. The cosy atmosphere of the canteen also provided a good opportunity for guests, speakers and board members alike to relax and discuss the conference so far. We felt that this was a very important element to include in the day. Opportunities for the Irish glass community to mingle are rare enough and we wanted to ensure the day left some room for everyone to re-connect and make some new connections.

Lunch finished and food digesting nicely we made our way back to the lecture hall. While the first half of the conference featured talks from speakers whose professional careers had been led by glass/craft but did not work with the material directly, the latter half was devoted to artists working with glass specifically.

Angela Thwaites 

First up was the wonderful Angela Thwaites. Angela is a glass artist, researcher and teacher based in London. She works predominately in kiln-cast glass and has been involved extensively in numerous research projects on refractory mould making for glass.  She talked about her practice and the development of her career which began with an undergraduate degree in glass and ceramics from Farnham College of Art and Design, Surry. A monumental point in her career occurred in 1983 when she was awarded a scholarship to study under one of the all-time masters of glass casting; Professor Libensky. After receiving three more consecutive scholarships, she completed her MA at the Academy of Applied Arts in Prague in 1985. 

Angela pointed out that the meaning of orientate is ‘to determine one’s position with reference to another point’.  She described her extensive career as a journey where, “each experience leads to another.” Her study period under the Czech master was a pivotal point in her practice. After it she was part of a research project at the Royal College of Art and in 2010 she was commissioned to write a book Mould Making for Glass which followed on from the findings of the project. She reminded us that any small opportunity such as a conversation at a conference perhaps or an exhibition call, could lead to the next important step in our careers. She also stressed that an open mind and willingness to never stop learning are paramount to progression.

The other area of Angela’s career which she feels has really brought her many valuable experiences is teaching. Angela is currently senior lecturer in Design Crafts at De Montfort University, Leicester and a tutor at Richmond Adult and Community College. In addition, she has taught at numerous institutions as a visiting lecturer and continues to teach workshops and master-classes in glass casting internationally. She finds teaching very rewarding and feels she often learns as much from students as they learn from her. We were delighted to have Angela teach a casting workshop in NCAD just prior to the symposium. She truly is a passionate and engaging educator. All the workshop participants enjoyed her warm, relaxed manner and genuine enthusiasm towards their casting projects. In addition to her teaching duties Angela works from her own studio which is slowly taking over her back garden. She is currently working on several projects, assisted by her cat!

Our second practitioner talk was from Slovenian artist and designer Tanja Pak(pronounced Tanya). Tanja is currently head of the glass and ceramics programme at the Academy of Fine Art and Design in Ljubljana, Slovenia’s capital. Tanja’s talk was entitled ‘Immersed in Duality’ and she focused on her relationship with glass as both an artist and a designer.

Tanja Pak

Her work is influenced by the rhythm and flow of the natural world. She works from a restrained colour pallet; black, white and transparent glass, so nothing distracts from the organic simplicity of her forms. Tanja began her career as an industrial designer, graduating in 1994 from the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Ljubljana. This initial training in design is evident in how her complex ideas are simplified and expressed as functional glassware which is manufactured in collaboration with Slovenian glass factories. The glass tableware is functional and stylish and has received honourable mentions in the Red Dot Design Awards. While it is very commercially successful, evidence of the artist’s passions and influences still remain. The design of the vessels echo water drops and ripples. Graceful curves and soft lines give these manufactured pieces a very organic and feminine feel. Tanja does not see a difference, as such, between her practice as a designer and as an artist. The same inspirations create both lines of work; they are two sides of the same coin and walking the line between them is an exciting challenge for her.

There is a meditative quality to all her work – quiet and still, a frozen moment. It is most evident in her large installations which are often immersive environments incorporating smells and sounds as well as lighting and visuals. An example of one such installation was Within at Ljubljana Castle, 2010. This work featured cast glass branches, illuminated within wooden ‘trees’. The room was darkened and visitors’ footsteps muted by the chipped bark across the floor. The bark also filled the room with an earthy smell, further enhancing the illusion of being in meditative woodland. The atmosphere Tanja creates in her installations is one of tranquillity and reflection. She uses glass for its special relationship with light which becomes part of the complete experience of the work. “Glass for me”, she said, “is pure poetry”. Her talk showed numerous slides and videos of her installation but I imagine they cannot compete with seeing the work in person – I hope I get the chance to do so one day.

Cappy Thompson 

Wrapping up a very successful and informative day was CappyThompson who came all the way from her native Seattle, Washington, USA. Cappy is regarded as one of the world’s best glass painters, a master of the grisaille or gray-tonal painting technique. However, the material glass or the technique she uses is not of central importance to her. Cappy is first and foremost a painter and what is important is the narrative content of the work rather than its canvas. She is self-taught in glass working, beginning as a stained glass painter. Her initial paintings were influenced by folk art and mythology. While the design of her imagery still references this style of drawing the content developed to become entirely her own and is drawn from her personal life experiences and dreams.

Cappy’s lecture dealt with her beginnings as an artist and then traced the development of her style and career through the content of her work. The audience, at least many that I spoke to afterwards, were really moved by Cappy’s lecture. It caught you off guard; one minute she would be telling a cheerful anecdote about an element in the story, the next moment she would reveal a very personal and painful memory. Her talk was warm, sincere and unassuming and I think it really allowed the audience to connect with the work she shared with us. The narrative style of her work easily captures the imagination, enriched by the detail and jewel-like colours. Hearing the story behind each of the characters she paints makes the beautiful work even more appealing.

Cappy has been producing her unique work for over thirty years and in that time she has taught workshops internationally in major glass institutions. We at GSoI made the most of Cappy’s visit to Ireland – she taught a great workshop at the National Sculpture Factory in Cork before the conference and another great one to the National College of Art and Design glass students the week after in Dublin. It wasn’t all work though, she did get to see Cork, Dublin and lots of beautiful Irish countryside while she was here and we assure you, she said she really enjoyed her stay!

When the talks finished up we headed over to Tactic Gallery at Sample Studios for the opening of Sofie Loscher’s exhibition Waiting in the Wings. Sofie’s exhibition one of two exhibitions curated by GSoI’s vice-chairperson Emer Lynch to coincide with the symposium. Our guest speaker Jerome Harrington formally opened the exhibition after a brief curator’s speech from Emer. Conference guests and speakers had a chance network and mingle a little more at the exhibition with a well earned cold beer. The second exhibition in the 'Orientate' visual arts programme, These Liquid Brinks featured artist Caroline Doolin and was opened at The Guesthouse on Sunday November 3^rd with a tea and cake reception. The exhibitions were very well received – but I won’t say more than that because Emer has promised me a much more exciting article discussing both them and her work as a curator in more detail in the New Year, thanks Emer.

GSoI Team with speakers and artists at Tactic 

Tanja Pak and Fiona Bryne

'Orientate' was a great success for the GSoI in 2013. 

Many thanks to all who were a part of it and cheers to something even better next year!   

About the author

Meadhbh McIlgorm studied glass at the National College of Art and Design and graduated in June 2013. She is the GSoI Media and Communications Officer; those of you present at ‘Orientate’ would have seen her at the registration desk and the rest of you are probably familiar with her monthly e-bulletins and notifications. 

She is currently Artist in Residence in the NCAD glass department.  

Debbie Dawson in China

'I am Not Magnificent' - Debbie Dawson 

Congratulations to GSoI Chairperson Debbie Dawson who set off this week to China!  

Debbie will travel to Xi'an, China to represent Ireland  in an international sculpture symposium.
She will be part of an ambitious initiative involving selected practitioners from China and Europe. The project has been developed by of  EUNIC (the  European Union of National Institutes for Culture) and  Culture Ireland, Ireland's state agency for the promotion of Irish arts abroad. 

Debbie Dawson is a stained glass artist and head of the glass department at CIT, Crawford College of Arts and Design. Her work is concerned with inner dialogues and the notion of the ‘self’. 

Debbie  was nominated by the National Sculpture Factory (NFC) and has been selected through an intense competitive process. The selection panel was impressed by Dawson's work but also her established relationships with China developed through projects she has been working on in her capacity as a lecturer at CIT. 

Poster from 'Poetics of the Handmade'
- Which later travelled to NCAD Gallery, Dublin

Dawson is no stranger to Chinese relations, having built up a strong relationship with Prof. Xiao Wei Zhuang, Director of the MA in Glass at the College of Fine Art, Shanghai University, and the inaugural Director of the Shanghai Museum of Glass. Debbie has hosted a number of Chinese exchange students at CCAD over the last couple of years, and has delivered workshops in China. She was the curator of Xiao Wei’s outstanding  solo exhibition, “Poetics of the Handmade” which was held at CIT Wandesford Quay Gallery as part of Ireland’d Year of Craft in 2011. She has herself delivered workshops at Shanghai university and has exhibited in China.  She has been invited to Xian for 10 days as one of up to 10 European artist and she will meet her Chinese colleagues and  have the opportunity to engage in residencies and international institutional exchange.

Also travelling from Ireland is Mary McCarthy, Director of the National Sculpture Factory, Cork. Mary has been selected as one of six European speakers to deliver  a key note presentation and she has been invited to talk about the role of artists  in Ireland and the work of the NSF in expanding the definitions of sculpture and the possibilities for art works in the public realm.

'Like a Door Opening' - Debbie Dawson

Both Mary and Debbie have been invited and will be hosted by the prestigious Chinese National Academy of the Arts, EUNIC and the Shaaxi Provincial Department of culture while their travel is supported by Culture Ireland.

The conference topics include  space/Culture and Object. This is an exciting opportunity for both Debbie and Mary. Eric  Messerschmidt, President of EUNIC has been highly impressed by Ireland's desire to participate  in this event and the efforts of the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department of Arts Heritage and the Gaeltacht via Culture Ireland to enable this participation.

See more of Debbie's beautiful work on her website

Well done Debbie and best of luck on your trip! 

'Nobodys Girl' - Debbie Dawson 

ORIENTATE Symposium: Online booking now opening

​

Great news! Tickets for our Oct/Nov events are on sale now. We have a fantastic line up of international presenters for the Orientate Symposium in Cork including our keynote speaker Francesca Giubilei from GLASSTRESS (IT). There are also places available on our workshops in Cork and Dublin! Angela Thwaites will be leading a Glass Casting workshop in the National College of Art and Design (Dublin) and Cappy Thompson will teach a Glass Painting workshop at the National Sculpture Factory (Cork).

Buy Tickets HERE

GSoI Nov Events 2013

So we have had a very busy year so far at GSoI but its not over yet! In Nov we will be having  a series of exciting events in both Dublin and Cork - workshops, an exhibition and a conference with a fantastic line up of speakers...

 Here's a little taster so you can be sure to put us in your dairy!

Shanghai in Cork

Yanyan Wong and Shihui Zhang are exchange students from the Shanghai University of Fine Art. They spent three months in spring practicing glass, ceramic and textiles at C.I.T Crawford College of Art and Design, Cork. After six weeks of dedicated work, the girls showcased some pieces in the recently renovated foyer area of the college. 

Everybody at the college was delighted to see an influx of new and interesting material, and also such a great volume of work after six weeks. The girls were so friendly and enthusiastic; they really made their mark on the students. Not only was their lunchtime showcase pleasing to the eye, there was a wonderful social element between the girls, the students and our tutor, Debbie Dawson. It was a pleasure to be present at what may be the first of many glass showcases in the college. The new Applied Art course is starting up next September, our little glass community in the college will hopefully blossom.

Yan’s work uses glass, ceramic and textile.  Her practice is about flowers floating on the River Lee. She discovered the idea when she was rowing on the River Lee on her first Saturday in Cork. A beautiful permutation occurred in this work where Yan was able to merge the primary materials of glass, ceramic and textiles. Combining these materials brings about a new understanding of these elements; weight, density, texture. The transparency and two dimensional qualities of the glass give way to the more solid and three dimensional qualities of the ceramic. A beginning; Yan certainly seems to be creating something exciting here. She is intuitive, a quality that I have heard students speaking of at the Shanghai Academy. However, this natural intuition is always accompanied by careful consideration of the process.      

Focusing on material properties, Yan has used hard and soft material together. She describes this piece as “a contradictory work”. It’s a delicate type of contradiction. The glass is etched and then, like a patchwork quilt she has very affectionately worked the fibers around each panel. This work is one that is much more poignant when seen in the flesh. Gorgeous meditative oranges and subtle hints from other palettes flow. The river is truly present here. The piece is a river itself and each panel is presented as moment from its surface. It is a mix between a traditional Chinese scroll, a patchwork quilt, and a stained glass panel. We can see a beautiful synthesis of antiquity, complemented by a subtle sense of inventiveness. 

Shihuis’ work is about shape. She states “The most simple shape of the world is round, square and triangle”. She uses the plane of shape and the plane of material to make three-dimensional effects. Her work, in contrast to Yan’s, is more design based. The very careful execution of this simple concept makes for an interesting consideration of form. One associates the work with the inner workings of the cosmos; shapes construct other shapes, which in turn construct other shapes and so on. This approach plays on micro and macro imagery. Exploring how we all exist in this world in a physical alliance. It speaks of symbiosis; it is organic yet can also place itself in the realms of something practical and mathematical. Shihui had worked on many ways of conveying this sense of shape. It is simplicity she admires the most. This has provided an excellent platform from which to continue her endeavors. I am excited to see her progression with the work once she has settled back in Shanghai.

The quality and quantity of the work after just six weeks was something that took our students by surprise. We have all heard of the Chinese work ethic, however the girls seemed to have this and also some another magic behind them. Their dedication to all materials under investigation is to their credit. They dealt with each element appropriately and appeared to have no discomfort in showcasing their works or experimenting. They are proud and genuinely interested in both the material and conceptual relationships between the maker, material and the other life that the work emanates after it is has been granted freedom in the artistic realm. The girls visit was something of an inspiration, they displayed a mystical sense of wonderment about them. They carry themselves with an honest, polite grace that can be seen through their work. It is this honesty and pursuit of the self that has certainly rubbed off on myself and a notable few that have been to Shanghai on exchange, but also those who shared our glass-workshop with them. I feel as though I have visited their culture, I have yet to discover in what way. 

Written by Róisín Foley, C.I.T CCAD Glass, R.E.P Glass Society of Ireland

Boyd Sugiki & Lisa Zerkowitz: Lectures on personal practice

Apologies for the slow down on blog post in the last few weeks, I have been away in Scotland but am returning soon and will get lots of news and articles up ASAP! In the mean time you may like to get your glass fix at this talk at the National College of Art and Design:

Glassblowing in Stourbridge

The following article has been written by GSoI member Catherine Keenan. Catherine Keenan is a glass artist based on the lovely north coast of Ireland, in Portstewart.

Finding a glassblowing studio whose hiring rates are reasonably priced, with a skilled assistant on hand, if desired, and the studio is always up and running and available has proven difficult to find over the years.  Since 2009 I had travelled to Sunderland to hire at the National Glass Centre, but with their major renovations last summer I was forced to find a new venue.  So I took a chance on the ‘Stourbridge Glassblowing Studio’, at the Ruskin Glass Centre.  It is part run by my ‘old’ teacher from the International Glass Centre, Stephen Foster who shares it with Peter Fricker and brothers Ian and Vic Bamforth.

A major draw for me to hire their studio is the fact that Ian Bamforth assists me, therefore he knows all the workings of the space and as a skilled maker can offer helpful advice.  He’s also easy going and a good laugh...that always helps when under pressure due to the expense and time restraints of hiring!

Although you will need to bring your own hand tools, with a some prior communication, the studio has everything else you would need.  I would suggest to other irish makers who are flying over to order your glass colour so it is delivered directly to the studio. 

There is an introductory offer for your first day of hiring; £135 and subsequent days are 

£170 each.  It’s £80 per day for an assistant.

If you can spare some time to see the area there are several museums and quite a few studios to visit.  The Ruskin Glass Centre, which hosts the British Glass Festival and Biennale, has many glass artists based there and also the recently opened Webb Corbett Visitor Centre.  I was fortunate enough to be personally shown around the museum by former factory master glassblower Malcolm Andrews.  He also happened to teach at the International Glass Centre, Brierley Hill (before my time) and had very fond memories of a young Paedar Lamb!

Not far up the road (it’s called the ‘Crystal Mile’) is the Red House Glass Cone, which is the only fully intact example of the18th century red brick glass cones that used to be dotted all over the area.  There’s a museum display and glassblowing studio with live demos.  Then, just a bit further still, is Broadfield House Glass Museum which has a huge glass collection ranging from the 17th century to the present day.  You can also watch skilled glassblower Allister Malcolm at work.

If you like real ale I can’t imagine there’s a better place in England to sample a wide variety of great beer in real pubs...that’s another reason to enlist Ian as an assistant as he’s a wealth of knowledge on decent pubs!

It’s easy enough to get to Stourbridge from Birmingham airport, there is a train station at the terminal (connected by a monorail), you get the train to Birmingham New Street, then walk to Moore Street Station (5 mins) and get the train to Stourbridge Junction, and finally get a connecting train to Stourbridge Town.  You can get a taxi from there, or ask at the bus station for a stop by the Ruby Cantonese Chinese Restaurant which is beside the Ruskin Glass Centre.

If you have any questions feel free to contact me via email: catherinekeenan126@gmail.com

Links:
http://www.catherinekeenanglass.com/

http://ruskinglasscentre.co.uk

http://ruskinglasscentre.co.uk/tennants/stourbridge-glassblowing-studio/

http://www.ianbamforthglass.com

http://www.dudley.gov.uk/see-and-do/museums/red-house-glass-cone/

by Catherine Kennan

Karen Donnellan writes about Jeff Zimmer for GAS Newsletter

Jeff Zimmer’s background in acting retains a strong influence over his work. The series, Theatres of Glass (2010-2011) is an obvious offshoot, but even the newest works from the whitewash series feel like a scene, set for action. After completing a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre Studies, Zimmer realised the vulnerability inherent in acting in the rehearsal stage was too much for a lifetime’s pursuit. Conversely, creating an object separate from the artist allowed him to experiment with creative abandon in the privacy of his own studio. Thus began his career as a visual artist and maker.

The artist’s current series, whitewash, is decidedly political in content. In each of these beautiful snow-scapes, the debris and reminders of death are only partially hidden from view. It is an anti-war statement, but is made in a way that “those who supported the war can look at it and appreciate it.” Jeff employs a Taoist approach in the assertions he makes
within the work. Being very conscious of the growing polarization of politics and society in the US, his work is an empathetic communication of his ideals. While consciously making them as beautiful as possible, it allows for the ugly message to be put across in a more digestible way. In doing so, he hopes for the audience to appreciate the duality without judgment. In his own words, the work alludes to “the way in which we all try to whitewash something of ourselves, as individuals and as nations. It’s a human need to see oneself as someone who is good on some fundamental level, so that tension between the desire to present ourselves as good, is in conflict with the knowledge we have of the bad things we have done.” 

The key moment that redirected his creative energies towards painting in particular, came to pass at an exhibition of cubist art at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. Jeff describes this as “an incredible damascene moment where I suddenly started to see the world rendered in flat planes of three-dimensional stained glass. It was unlike anything I had seen in my life, but I knew then that I was going to work with flat glass.” Following several years of researching and solitary experimentation on the kitchen table with a 7” square kiln, Jeff came across a work by Judith Schaechter called Little Torcher at Renwick Gallery in DC. This pivotal discovery brought about some drastic technical and visual changes in Zimmer’s work and Schaechter later became a mentor.

 He also recognizes Tim Tate and Michael Janis of the Washington Glass School among those who inspired and supported him early on in his glass career. “Tim Tate was there at the beginning, being able to share a studio with him as he set up the Washington glass school opened so many doors, and the fact that he was so interested in taking glass and pushing it forward in terms of content was significant,” Zimmer says.

In 2004, Zimmer began working towards a Master’s to allow for a more focused and full-time exploration of the technique. His research of programs on both sides of the Atlantic lead him to the Edinburgh College of Art (now part of the University of Edinburgh). The program, then lead by Ray Flavell and Alec Galloway, was one of few that offered Architectural glass on a full time basis. It was here that his ideas on perception and ambiguity developed, which remain strong themes in his work to date. Upon graduation, he was offered a position as Artist in Residence, in addition to teaching architectural and stained glass to part-time students in conjunction with the college’s Office of Lifelong Learning Program. Jeff still runs the part-time stained glass course and is presently a Temporary Lecturer in Glass within the main Glass Department.

A residency at North Lands Creative Glass in 2006 brought about another shift in artistic direction for Jeff. Having arrived in this remote landscape at the Northern tip of Scotland with a very cerebral proposal for new work, it proved difficult to resolve. However, he couldn’t help but respond to the 360-degree horizon he found there, which his first landscapes. The impetus of the series was in part, “to capture that elemental feeling of such vast space.” Previous to that opportunity, Jeff’s work had been strongly figurative, but as I found out, his military father painted landscapes as a hobby. Jeff’s work does stem from a very different emotional place, but even so, perhaps it is no surprise that he has been drawn to the genre.

Despite these references and the suggestive title, we were All wrong, the work retains an element of ambiguity. As for the frames, those are scoured from second-hand shops and auctions. The more ostentatious and grandiose, the better. As a classic marker of important and perhaps conservative art, Jeff conciously utilizes them to undermine the cosy nature that the patina of time gives to older art, implying a feeling of safety.

The notions of borders will be explored in Jeff’s next body of work, which is particularly relevant as the Scottish Independence Referendum is coming up in 2014. Where, as the artist notes, “We will have the whole country deciding how we define ourselves... Who is in? Who is out?”

Jeff is the editor of the Scottish Glass Society newsletter, which is published on
a quarterly basis. His work is represented by The wexler Gallery in Philadelphia and Maurine Littleton Gallery in washington, DC a quarterly basis. 

Jeff Zimmer will be teaching a glass painting workshop at the National Sculpture Factory this April, for more info see the NSF website: HERE 

This article was first published in GAS News, January 2013

The GSoI would like to thank  the GAS for allowing the reproduction of the above article for our blog

By Karen Donnellan