DESIGN(ed) IN GLASS

Published by Ken Saunders Gallery 230 West Superior Street Chicago, IL 60654 www.kensaundersgallery.com © 2016 Ken Saunders Gallery All Rights Reserved Design by Amy Stieve Photography by Martin Knowles, Jon Hustead, Mark Hursty and Amy Stieve

Published on the occasion of the exhibition DESIGN(ed) IN GLASS Featuring work by: JULIE CONWAY MARK HURSTY YOSUKE MIYAO KATHRYN WIGHTMAN May 6 - September 2, 2016

D E S I G N (ed) I N G L A S S JULIE CONWAY MARK HURSTY YOSUKE MIYAO KATHRYN WIGHTMAN

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Artist/makers working in the realm of the hand-made revel in the power of their intuition and technical prowess as their exerted mastery informs the creation of objects whose usefulness could rest solely on qualities of exquisiteness. (Even as they embrace the happy accidents that may lead to unexpected breakthroughs!) Our deepest senses relate to hand crafted objects and there is a profound connection established when we see traces of the craftsperson’s effort in their work.

Offered as a group of engaging objects with utilitarian qualities the exhibition, Design(ed) in Glass, stands as a fascinating overview of what intentional design means to contemporary artists working in the medium.

Julie Conway creates sculptural lighting in glass often working on site-specific installations. Since first gathering hot glass in 1997 Julie has traveled the world to apprentice with the great masters of glass working. The artist’s studio practice is located in Seattle where the rich glass working scene has inspired her to continue to refine her expertise. Her wondrous Raven, installed as part this exhibition, is covered with over 300 small blown glass embellishments. The artist has made use traditional materials and techniques to create edgy evocative sculptural works with a distinctly contemporary aesthetic and appeal.

Yosuke Miyao’s breathtakingly austere forms are created by bending thick pieces of float glass by hand. To create his Stool the artist utilized a dozen different glass-working techniques and 5 different tools to bend a single sheet of glass into the desired shape. For the artist/designer the float glass, used to make windows, with its smooth finish and complete transparency, is quintessentially beautiful while Miyao’s artistic impulse is to imbue his creations with surprising function. Miyao’s bench seems to float in the space it occupies lending a softness to a setting despite the material’s actual unyielding hardness.

Mark Hursty uses pressed glass in ways that are both conceptual and very craft based. The use of a manufacturing technique that was popularized in the 19th century as a way to create decorative objects inexpensively gives the artist’s works a surprisingly hand-made quality. Hundreds of molded glass elements, each similar in shape and size and yet visually unique, have been sewn into large hanging sheets and shaped forms. The objects Hursty has created for the exhibition have organic qualities that recall fiber works even as their serial qualities suggest the digitization of a single original element.

Kathryn Wightman finds inspiration in the juxtaposition of digital strategies and traditional art making techniques when she creates conceptual sculptures that explore domesticity, women’s work and craft. The artist’s large glass Rug and two glass “needlepoints” with their hybrid decorative patterns are technical tours-de-force that bristle with critical ripostes. Wightman’s Rug is the outlier in this exhibition since she has taken an object thoroughly identified with design and made it impractical and unusable. Like the finest Persians and Tibetans Wightman’s Rug is for contemplation and not for walking upon.

Taken together the artists in Design(ed) in Glass advance a number of critical and conceptual issues which designer/makers must grapple with. The best work in the exhibition achieves a balance of function and concept with form ultimately subjected to the needs of the first two. Kathryn Wightman has pointed out that “digital technologies and traditional working methods are blended in a way that seeks to demonstrate sensitivity and understanding to material.” I want to express my gratitude to the artists for pursuing their passion and creating work that is unique and authentic.

- Ken Saunders -

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JULIE CONWAY

RAVEN (detail) blown glass, steel and lighting components 36 x 29 inches 2015

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PIOGGIA SCONCE blown glass, steel and lighting components 27 x 14 x 6 inches 2015

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EDUCATION

1999-15 Continued Artistic Study, Teaching Assistantships and Apprenticeships in Glassmaking / Pilchuck Glass School, Pratt Fine Arts, Glass Furnace Istanbul, Abate Zanetti School of Glass 1990-91 Art History / University of Avignon, FRANCE Study Abroad IAU 1989-93 Art History & French DOUBLE MAJOR / Colorado State University

E X H I B I T I O N S , C O M M I S S I O N S & D E S I G N S H O W S 2015

2014 2013

2012 2011 2010 2009 2008

2006

2005

DESIGN(ed) IN GLASS, group show / Ken Saunders Gallery / Chicago, IL Custom glass lighting installation / Four Seasons Hotel / Seattle, WA Custom chandelier / Ovation 309 / Madison, WI Feature works at Vancouver Convention Centre / IDS West / Vancouver, BC Canada Custom Glass lighting installation / Seattle Marriott Hotel Waterfront / Seattle, WA for Balroom Blown Glass Sculpture and custom glass installation / Hilton Hotel / Costa Mesa, CA Glass lighting exhibition / UrbanAdd Architecture / Seattle, WA Custom, 1500 piece glass chandeliers / Fisher Island, FL Custom chandelier installation / Suter Collection / Seattle, WA Custom pendants for designer Paul Nelson / Kaufman Collection Custom lighting installation &, glass chandeliers / Foundation Night Club / Seattle, WA Site-specific, art glass lighting installation / Magnolia Hotel Houston / Houston, TX Custom lighting installation / Proxibid Corporate Headquarters / Omaha, NE Chandelier installation / ZIN Room, Hotel Deco / Omaha, NE Chandelier installation / Private residence / Seabrook Private Island, SC Architectural Digest Trade Show Function+Art / PRISM Gallery / New York & Chicago “Lampada Equilibria,” custom lighting installation / Garland Law Corporate Office / Omaha, NE Permanent chandelier installation / JLofts Luxury Loft / Omaha, NE Glass Biennial 600 / Amarillo Museum of Art / Amarillo, TX FLUX: Reflections in Contemporary Glass, site-specific installation / New Mexico Museum of Art / Santa Fe, NM Custom Sculptural Glass Installation for Foyer (in collaboration with Teresa Camozzi) / Schimelpfinig Public Library / Plano, TX Custom glass lighting installation / Levine/Lauer Collection / San Francisco, CA Custom Lighting Installation / Victoria Price Private Collection / Santa Fe, NM International Design Expo and Lecture on “Efficient Energy in the Arts Studios” / Santa Fe Design Week / Santa Fe, NM Chandelier installation feature & 6 custom chandeliers / Treasure Bay Hotel Casino / Biloxi, MS 27 Glass Light Fixture Installation / Santa Fe’s Convention Center Lobby / Santa Fe Design Week / Santa Fe, NM Installation of glass architectural elements and lighting / Italian chocolate factory, Walt Disney Epcot Center / Orlando, FL

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

2012-present Faculty / Pratt Fine Arts Center / Seattle, WA 2007-present Founder / BioGlass.org 1997-present Owner Artist & Designer / ILLUMINATA ART GLASS DESIGN, LLC 2008 Glass Blowing and Flameworking Teacher / Public Glass / San Francisco, CA 2005 Teacher Assistant, Cam Ocagi / The Glass Furnace / Istanbul, Turkey 2003-11 Class organizer, teacher assistant / Abate Zanetti Scuola del Vetro / Venice, Italy

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PUBLIC SPEAKING, PRESENTATIONS & ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 2015 2014 2013

2011 2010 2009 2008 2007

Panel Presentation / NYCxDesign, New York City Design Week / New York, NY Presenter / IDS West / Vancouver, BC Canada Glass Art Society / San Jose, CA Host & Moderator Green Panel / Glass Art Society / Chicago, IL Member / Northwest Designer Craftsmen (Pacific Northwest 60-year old craft artisans organization) “Subcultures in Glass Mastery,” presentation and co-organizer with Pecha Kucha / Seattle Art Museum / Seattle, WA Making Futures, published paper / Plymouth College of Art / United Kingdom Feature Arts article “Through a Glass Brightly” / Omaha Magazine: July/August 2010 Nomination for Omaha Entertainment Award Best 3D Artist / OEAA Awards Organizer / United Nations World Environment Day Featured Speaker / AUSGLASS Conference / Canberra, Australia Article mention / Glass Quarterly Magazine: Summer 2007

ARTIST STATEMENT Julie Conway, artist and owner of ILLUMINATA ART GLASS DESIGN LLC specializing in custom art glass lighting, and site-specific architectural installations. Julie’s first molten blob of glass was formed in 1997, and from there, she never looked back. Her years of apprenticeship with international glass masters forged her dedicated studio practice using traditional techniques with a contemporary design aesthetic.

“Illuminata” the name of her studio, stems from the Italian Renaissance group of thinkers and artists who expanded consciousness and brought enlightenment to the public. Their daring courage influences many of my artworks and challenges my perceived limitations. Julie is inspired by our collective human experience and driven to create unique glassworks that bring more light and beauty into the world.

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MARK HURSTY

CANDLE VORTEX manual mold-pressed glass and bronze wire rope 35 x 35 x 1 inches 2016

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WATER CLOCK JAALI (in process at the artist’s studio) manual mold-pressed glass and bronze wire rope 90 x 30 x 1 inches 2016

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EDUCATION 2017

National Glass Centre, PhD / Pressed Glass for Studio Practice: Reinventing Moulds and Methods for Molten Glass / Univ. of Sunderland 2011-12 Fulbright Scholar, China / Tsinghua University College of Art and Design 2008 Master of Fine Arts Glass, Sculptural and Dimensional Studies / Alfred University, New York State College of Ceramics 1993 Bachelor of Fine Arts, Film Audio Video / Rhode Island School of Design

S O L O E X H I B I T I O N S 2016 2010 2009 2008

Doctrines of Space / National Glass Centre / Sunderland, UK Custom Glass lighting installation / Seattle Marriott Hotel Waterfront / Seattle, WA for Glass lighting exhibition / UrbanAdd Architecture / Seattle, WA Custom lighting installation &, glass chandeliers / Foundation Night Club / Seattle, WA

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS 2016 2015 2014 2013

2012

2010 2009 2008

2007 2004 2003 2001

Design(ed) in Glass / Ken Saunders Gallery / Chicago, IL Creative Makings / Gateshead Arts / Gateshead, UK Now/Then / Shanghai Museum of Glass, Qing Dynasty Exhibition / Shanghai, China Int’l Glass Art and Design Exhibition / Qisheng Contemporary Art Museum / Chengdu, China Guangzhou Glass Biennial / Guangzhou, China Art Shanghai / Hongqiao Park / Shanghai, China China National Academy of Painting Salon / Songzhuang Art District / Beijing, China Qinghuangdao Glass Museum Inaugural Exhibition / Qinghuangdao, China Installation Biennial / Appleton Museum of Art / Ocala, FL Elusive Matter / Museum of Contemporary Craft / Portland, OR UP / Urban Institute for Contemporary Art, Int’l Sculpture Conference / Grand Rapids, MI Alfred International / Central Academy of Fine Arts / Beijing, China Glass Art Society Int’l Student Exhibition / Museum of Contemporary Craft / Portland, OR Exhibition Around the World / Geborgen Kamers Den Hague / The Netherlands Intrigue: New Works by Sheryl Ellinwood and Mark Hursty / Lattitude Gallery / Boston, MA Emerging Artist Annual / Marta Hewett Gallery / Louisville, KY Chroma / Gallery 5 North / Boston,MA

PERMANENT COLLECTIONS 2010 2005 2002

The Sontag Foundation, Ponte Vedra, FL Cell Signaling Technology, Incorporated, Danvers, MA Mass Biolabs, Roxbury, MA

ACADEMIC APPOINTMENTS 2011-13 2011-12 2008-10 2006-08

Graduate Researcher, Instructor / University of Sunderland, UK Fullbright researcher, China / Tsinghua University, Beijing, CN Visiting Assistant Professor / Jacksonville University, FL Graduate Teaching Assistant / Alfred University NYSCC, NY

LECTURES & OTHER PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE 2016 2015

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Glass Virus Think Tank, Delegate, KADK, Børnholm, Denmark xCoAx Conference, Demonstrator, Glasgow, Scotland Electronic Visualisations and the Arts, Presenter, London, UK

2014

2013

Demonstrator / Glass Art Society Conference / Chicago, IL, USA Demonstrator / Shanghai Museum of Glass / China Delegate / Glass Virus Think Tank / Gerrit Rietveld Acadamie / Netherlands Demonstrator / Sheridan College / Ontario, Canada Presenter / Society of Glass Technology / Durham University, UK Invited Speaker / Glass Society of Ireland Annual Conference / Dublin, Ireland Presenter / ISEA 2014 / Dubai, United Arab Emirates Presenter / Tang Dynasty Symposium / ELTE University / Budapest, Hungary

1994-2011

Owner & Founder / Hurstin Studio Glass and Metal / MA USA

ARTIST STATEMENT Mark Hursty’s recent project concerns reviving and reinterpreting pressed glass, a serial mass production technique, for sculptural use. Ancient and overlooked press-molding is paired with CAD/CAM and waterjet to create formers for molten glass. The result is a series of modular screen systems that expand and contract like fabric.

When the component vortices are linked, not only do they expand in numbers, they stretch; the elasticity of the medium binding them makes the screens into flexible membranes. As a sculptural object, it is a screen whose variable forming qualities allow it to generate the permanence or dynamism, stillness or motion that site specificity requires.

As an artifact, it compiles the history of pressed glass from primitive hand pressing to digital manufacture and back in the form of assisted interventions.

Pressure is used as an instrument in a creative relational sense; here, it is embodied in formable, permeable dividers that mediate cultural space and provide a literal backdrop to the notions of absence and presence contained within their interstitial spaces.

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blown and sand carved glass 8 x 17 x 17 inches 2014

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YOSUKE MIYAO

STOOL float glass 22 x 16 x 20 inches 2014

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GLASS CLOTH BOAT DANCE SONG float glass 28 x 20 x 15 inches 2014

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EDUCATION 1999 1998 1997

MFA / Tama Art University Department of Design Craft Design Workshop Assistant / Nijima glass Festival BFA / Tama Art University Department of Design Craft Design

SELECTED EXHIBITIONS & AWARDS 2015

Grand prize / Kanagawa Art Exhibition Grand prize / Takaoka Craft Competition Jury prize / Contemporary Glass Art / ONODA 2014 Semi-Grand Prize / Kanagawa Art Exhibition New Glass Review 35 / Corning Museum of Glass.

2013 “Tig of light” / Yoseinomori Glass Art Museum / Okayama “Feeling of Glass” / Gallery Yunor / Tokyo 2012 New Glass Review 33 / Corning Museum of Glass 2009 Yosuke Miyao + Yoko Togashi Exihibition / Gallery NHK / Yammagata 2007 The International Exhibition of Glass KANAZAWA / Kanazawa 2006 Glass Appeal /Meguro 2004 The International Exhibition of Glass KANAZAWA / Kanazawa Inside of The Architecture: Yoko & Yosuke / Gallery Kingyo / Tokyo 2003 The Beauty of The Contemporary Glass Art / SATSUMA, 2002 The ITAMI International Craft Exhibition 2001 The Contemporary Glass Art / ONODA 2000 Excellence Prize / ITAMI Exhibition 1999 Japanese Glass Japan Craft Design Association

COMMISSIONED WORKS Stanley Electric Co., Ltd., Tokyo

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

2010-present Founder / MIYATOMI GLASS STUDIO 2007-11 Lecturer / Tama Art University Department of Ceramic and Glass 2001-05 Studio Artist / Glass Studio Shirakami 1999-01 Teaching Assistant / Tama Art University Department of Design Craft

ARTIST STATEMENT “The Perfect Flatness and Smoothness of Float Glass” Float glass is perfectly flat and smooth. Our senses process that flatness in a certain way.

The process of working with flat glass is very sophisticated. I don’t want to lose any of the glass’s transparency. Without sacrificing the cool and inorganic feeling, I want to create a soft and warm impression. My work explores the unique beauty and expressivity of the material.

In the future I want to add transparent decorative accents to buildings and walls.

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BENCH float glass 41 x 16 x 10 inches 2015

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KATHRYN WIGHTMAN

RUG (detail) sifted and sintered glass powder on glass sheet 41 x 62 inches 2016

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FADED - LIGHT sifted and sintered glass powder on glass sheet 21 x 30 inches 2016

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FADED - DARK sifted and sintered glass powder on glass sheet 21 x 30 inches 2016

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RUG sifted and sintered glass powder on glass sheet 41 x 62 inches 2016

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EDUCATION 2011 2005 2004

Ph.D. Research / University of Sunderland, UK / Funded by Arts Humanities Research Council Certificate in Teaching in the Lifelong Learning Sector / Newcastle College, UK M.A. Glass / University of Sunderland, UK B.A. Glass and Ceramics / University of Sunderland, UK

EXHIBITIONS 2016

DESIGN(ed) IN GLASS, group show / Ken Saunders Gallery / Chicago, IL Ornament / Glasmuseet Ebeltoft / Ebeltoft, Denmark Wanganui Arts Review / Sarjeant Gallery / Wanganui, NZ 2015-16 Hidden Narratives / Bullseye Gallery / Bay Area, Portland, US 2015 International Glass Prize / GlazenHuis / Lommel, Belgium 2014 Ranamok (touring show) / Canberra, Sydney & Brisbane, Australia Emerge / Bullseye Gallery/ Portland, Santa Fe, USA Emerge / Bellevue Arts Museum / Washington, USA UK Glass / GlazenHuis / Lommel, Belgium Crossing Boundaries / Taylor Jensen Fine Arts / Palmerston North, NZ 2013 Snapshot – New Zealand Glass / Quay Gallery / Wanganui, NZ Ranamok (touring show) / Canberra, Sydney & New South Wales, Australia Crossing Boundaries / North Art / Auckland, NZ Wanganui Arts Review / Sarjeant Gallery / Wanganui, NZ Blown Away with Glass / Percy Thomson Gallery / Stratford West, NZ From the River / Taupo Museum / Taupo, NZ 2012 Generate / NZSAG and Wanganui Glass Group Members Show / Wanganui Community Arts Centre / Wanganui, NZ British Glass Biennale / Ruskin Glass Centre / Stourbridge, UK Ph.D Thesis Exhibition / National Glass Centre / Sunderland, UK 2010 Glass North East / Houses of Parliament / London, UK British Glass Biennale / Ruskin Glass Centre / Stourbridge, UK 2009 Vessel Show / New School Gallery / York, UK Beautifully Crafted / National Glass Centre / Sunderland, UK The Frost Fair / Gateshead Quays / Gateshead, UK Brighton Art Fair / The Corn Exchange / Brighton, UK Wood and Glass / Bevere Gallery / Worcester, UK Patterned and Plain / Model House Gallery / Cardiff, UK 2008 Autumn Exhibition / Cowdy Gallery / Gloustershire, UK Brighton Art Fair / The Corn Exchange / Brighton, UK Eye Candy / Window Gallery / London, UK Black and White / Heart Gallery / West Yorkshire, UK British Glass Biennale / Ruskin Glass Centre / Stourbridge, UK Selected Makers / Hazel Collins Gallery / London, UK Design Show Liverpool / Contemporary Urban Centre / Liverpool, UK Prism / Designed and Made Gallery / Newcastle upon Tyne, UK Blast / Zest Gallery / London, UK Breath of Fresh Air / Byard Art Gallery / Cambridge, UK Glass 3 / Georgetown Park / Washington DC Cohesion Glass / Majilis Gallery / Dubai, UAE 2007 Brighton Craft Fair / The Corn Exchange / Brighton, UK New English Glassmakers / Steam Gallery / Devon, UK Newcastle and Gateshead Art Fair / The Sage / Newcastle upon Tyne, UK Effervescence / Barn Art Gallery / Sussex, UK

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AWARDS 2015 2014

Creative New Zealand Funding / Quick Response Grant / New Zealand Ranamok – Winner / Canberra Glass Works / Canberra, Australia Emerge – Gold Award / Bullseye Gallery / Portland, USA 3D Award Winner / Taranaki Art Awards / Taranaki, NZ Claudia Borella Design Award / Sponsored by Bullseye Glass Company / Wanganui, NZ Runner up: Warm Glass Prize / Bullseye Glass Category / Warm Glass, UK Bullseye Glass Scholarship / Northlands Creative Glass / Lybster, Scotland Nominated for the Corning Incorporated Award for Outstanding Student / Pilchuck Glass School / Seattle, USA General Scholarship / Pilchuck Glass School / Seattle, USA Scholarship / Glass Art Society (GAS) / Seattle, USA

2012 2011

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

2014-present Lecturer in Creative Programs / Wanganui School of Design / Wanganui, NZ 2006-present Practicing Artist / Kathryn Wightman Glass / International 2016 2015 2014

2013 2012-14 2011-12 2011

2008-12 2007-09

Instructor, Between Reality and Illusion / Warm Glass / Bristol, UK Instructor, Between Reality and Illusion / Bullseye Resource Centre / Santa Fe, Portland, Bay Area Instuctor, Hybrid Print Frontiers / Pilchuck Glass School / Seattle, USA Instuctor, Graphic Glass Patterns & Imagery for Kilnformers / Chicago Glass Collective / Chicago, USA Instructor, Powder Screenprinting / Creative Glass Centre / Kent, UK & Zurich, Switzerland Teaching Assistant, Graphic Collisions, Jeffrey Sarmiento / Pilchuck Glass School / Seattle, USA Lecturer, B.F.A, Diploma in Glass Design & Production / Wanganui Glass School / Wanganui, NZ Studio Assistant / National Glass Centre / Sunderland, UK Visiting Lecturer, Glass / University of Sunderland / Sunderland, UK Design Consultant (Ceramics) / Traidcraft / University of Sunderland Partnership / Peru Teaching Assistant, Graphic Collisions, Jeffrey Sarmiento / Pratt Centre for Fine Arts Seattle, USA Tutor / Adult Education / Gateshead City Council / UK Tutor / Adult Education / Newcastle City Council / Newcastle upon Tyne, UK

ARTIST STATEMENT Kathryn Wightman’s work explores the connection between human existence and surfaces in the home that we interact with on a daily basis. The replicated glass surfaces serve as a metaphor for the realities of circumstance and experience.

Digital technologies and traditional working methods are blended in a way that seeks to demonstrate sensitivity and understanding to material, process and idea.

Hybrid decorative patterns are invented then deconstructed to create complex multiple layered compositions. Layers are screen printed and stacked to add depth, allowing the patterned forms to grow from the surface of the glass.

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