Drawn to Glass

DRAWN

Paul Marioni Dick Marquis Charles Parriott Preston Singletary Lisabeth Sterling April Surgent Cappy Thompson

Veruska Vagen Ulrica Hydman Vallien Bertil Vallien Jen Violette David Walters

TO GLASS

Hiroshi Yamano SCHANTZ GALLERIES 1

DAVID WALTERS Look, No Strings, 2011 Blown glass 14 x 17 x 17 inches (alternate view on back cover)

2

T

o manipulate glass, space, color, and light in the service of objectmaking takes training, dedication, and talent. But to manipulate glass, space, color, and light in the service of ideas takes an even deeper commitment. Ralph Waldo Emerson said: “Talent for talent’s sake is a bauble and a show. Talent working with joy in the cause of universal truth lifts the possessor to new powers.” The breadth of ways that artists master the demanding medium of glass is exceeded only by the variety of narratives and subjects they use in search of answers to existential questions—what matters in life, what is our purpose, how do we achieve harmony? As individual viewers, we approach works of art from our own unique perspectives, each of us recognizing our journey towards understanding of self and the world in a different story or subject. Art melds the personal and the universal, reflects our subconscious, and ignites our humanity—but this process looks different for everyone.

The artists in Drawn to Glass— Paul Marioni, Richard Marquis, Charles Parriott, Preston Singletary, Lisabeth Sterling, April Surgent, Cappy Thompson, Veruska Vagen, Ulrica Hydman Vallien, Bertil Vallien, Jen Violette, David Walters, Hiroshi Yamano— represent a panoply of perspectives in this search for universal truth. Each one, through unique approaches to glass-making and unique narrative content, serves as a guide through the often-turbulent adventure we call life. This range of voices represents a powerhouse of talent and ideology, each artist producing beautiful and provoking art. Which one are you drawn to?

1

PAUL MARIONI

P

aul Marioni is a founding member of the American Studio Glass movement and in love with the medium for its distinct ability to capture and manipulate light. Techniques have been explored and mastered but always in service of ideas about the complexities and foibles of being human. No subject seems off limits to this artist-renegade-philosopher-humorist. Blue Bagman both entertains and threatens, with a sumptuous, striated blue glass form, devilish ears, and tentacled arms reaching out. The sharp-toothed caricature on the Jaguar Vase melds levity and ferocity on a classically elegant and exquisitely-colored vase.

“Most of my work has been figurative and about human nature: what we do, why we do it, how we ornament ourselves, our heroes, historical moments, humor, sexuality, exotic and/or lost cultures, and a constant questioning. My work is often and purposefully left open to interpretation. I don’t want to tell the viewer what to think, but rather cause them to think.

Science is used to explain, I believe that art is meant to evoke and engage.”

2

PAUL MARIONI La Belle Creole / For My Father, 2011 Terrazzo 50 x 38 inches 3

PAUL MARIONI Blue Bagman, 2016 Blown glass, enamels 13 x 7 x 6.5 inches 4

PAUL MARIONI Jaguar Vase, 1992 Blown glass 19 x 9 x 9 inches

PAUL MARIONI Night Rider, 2005 Blown glass 8.75 x 9.5 x 9.5 inches 5

RICHARD MARQUIS

I

nspiration is everywhere for Whidbey Island-based artist and irreverent character, Richard Marquis. A virtuoso in murrine cane work and a pioneer in ceramic-based slab construction, Marquis also gives a nod to other crafts such as carpentry in his glass sculptures. A light-hearted, clever, and varied body of work is the result of years of practice, thoughtful control of the material, and boundless creativity. Wedding Cake is made of sumptuous and vibrantly-striped cane, the bride and groom of the cake topper sporting oversized top hats, themselves tiered like cakes. Are the dice there to remind us that marriage is a gamble? Elk Tower with Manikins is quintessentially Marquis—a wonderful composition of found objects around a centerpiece of repurposed cane pieces.

“The "Whole Elk Theory" is a semi-fictional thing that states that if you kill an elk you must use the whole thing.

That includes meat, skin, teeth, hooves, eyeballs, and all the private parts. Nothing goes to waste. Which is sort of the way I run my hotshop. All the cane, things that hit the floor, and all the bits and pieces that come out of the annealer are never thrown away but go into boxes with semi-legible labels that I find years later and incorporate into my other work.”

6

RICHARD MARQUIS Whole Elk Tower with Manikins, 2015 Blown glass, murrine, elk technique, found objects 17.5 x 19 x 13 inches 7

RICHARD MARQUIS Wedding Cake, 2016 Glass 13.5 x 11 x 11 inches 8

RICHARD MARQUIS Setter Head Bottle Vehicle, 2016 Glass: hot slab construction, cast glass, wood, brass 7 x 18 x 7 inches 9

CHARLES PARRIOTT

C

ombining surrealist imagery with the aest˘hetics of German Renaissance woodblock prints, Charles Parriott’s monochromatic glass panels are a compelling take on the medium. These works, which Parriott conceives, composes, and directs, are the result of ˘ a collaboration with master engraver Pavlina Cambalova, whom Parriott met on a Hauberg Fellowship at Pilchuck. The disembodied robes of the Wizard are a symphony of shapes and shading, enveloped in a moody atmosphere.

In Loaded Bride, an ethereally absent body is laden down by the various accoutrements of her ensemble.

“Most of my work has been figurative and about human nature: what we do, why we do it, how we ornament ourselves, our heroes, historical moments, humor, sexuality, exotic and/or lost cultures, and a constant questioning. My work is often and purposefully left open to interpretation. I don’t want to tell the viewer what to think, but rather cause them to think.

Science is used to explain, I believe that art is meant to evoke and engage.”

10

CHARLES PARRIOTT Wizard, 2018 Engraved, polished glass 10.5 x 5 x 1.5 inches

CHARLES PARRIOTT Loaded Bride, 2018 Engraved, polished glass 10.5 x 5 x 1.5 inches 11

PRESTON SINGLETARY

T

urning molten liquid glass into meaningful form is a metaphor for the Native American mythology of transformation, where spirits take the form of animals, who then become symbolic guides on earth. Preston Singletary connects his personal cultural perspective on Northwest Native art to current modern art movements and European glass-blowing traditions. Thunderbird’s reductive figure recalls Brancusi’s Bird in Space, Singletary’s atypical representation of a legendary bird infused with power and strength. Spring Awakening, with its classic egg form, bold coloration, and dynamic form line design, is a potent metaphor for rebirth and renewal.

“My work with glass transforms the notion that Native artists are only best when traditional materials are used. It has helped advocate on the behalf of all indigenous people—affirming that we are still here—that that we are declaring who we are through our art in connection to our culture.”

12

PRESTON SINGLETARY Ice World, 2018 Blown and sand carved glass 19.5" x 8.5" x 4" inches 13

PRESTON SINGLETARY Spring Awakening, 2014 Blown and sand carved glass 13.5 x 8 x 8 inches 14

PRESTON SINGLETARY Untitled (Swan), 2018 Blown and sand carved glass 22.5 x 9 x 3 inches

PRESTON SINGLETARY Travels the Oceans, 2014 Blown and sand carved glass 15 x 20 x 10 inches 15

LISABETH STERLING

L

isabeth Sterling’s background in drawing is on exquisite display in her engraved glass works, the luminous colorless material layered with a rich contrasting hue to heighten the impact. As with the German Expressionists artists who inspire her, Sterling’s designs are an emotionally impactful, non-linear combination of human and natural elements, wreathed together beautifully around often uniquely shaped vessels. Their enigmatic narratives unpack the dichotomies of human existence—sometimes playful, sometimes moody—and bring the complexities of the subconscious to the surface. The aptly titled Thorns and Honey illustrates the tension between the simultaneous sting and sweetness of life.

On Thorns and Honey: “The sweetest flowers, and the most dynamic relationships can be tricky to handle.”

On Two Tame Tigers: “I was never sure if stripes were for camouflage or to give warning.”

16

LISABETH STERLING Thorns and Honey Engraved cameo glass 15.5 x 7.5 x 7 inches 17

LISABETH STERLING Head in the Clouds, Feet in the Ground, 2016 Engraved cameo glass 14.75 x 9.5 x 9.5 inches 18

LISABETH STERLING Two Tame Tigers, 2016 Engraved cameo glass 15.75 x 6.75 x 6.75 inches 19

APRIL SURGENT

A

pril Surgent relishes in the evocative power of the visual to guide us to a deeper appreciation for the precariousness of both the earth and humanity. Her work is meditative and intimate, lusciously textured yet diaphanous, preserving poignant portraits of both the natural and human worlds. Bringing freshness to the traditional craft of wheel engraving and the millennials-long art of cameo engraving, Surgent’s white-capped blue glass canvases teem with expressionistic energy.

"This piece is of the Farallon Islands National Wildlife Refuge off of San Francisco. I worked there for about 3 months last spring and was drawn to the rocky landscape that seemed so barren but supported amazing amounts of wildlife; namely seabirds and marine mammals."

20

APRIL SURGENT Refuge, 2019 Cameo engraved glass 13.125 x 42.125 x .75 inches

21

APRIL SURGENT The stillness found in very early spring, 2019 Cameo engraved glass 16 x 21 x .75 inches 22

APRIL SURGENT Spring Dawn, 2019 Cameo engraved glass 14 x 18 x .75 inches 23

CAPPY THOMPSON

F

lattened vessel forms provide a blank slate for Cappy Thompson’s robust narrative imagery, reading like theater with a mainstage and a translucent backdrop. Thompson tells tales inspired by motifs, symbols, and fables from varied world cultures. Her unique style reflects her lifetime study of global cultures, myths, and spiritual traditions, and her love of the flat perspective of pre-Renaissance and folk art. Her intuitive process starts with the seed of something from her library, then she draws directly on the vessel. Once the composition is complete, she reversepaints on the interior surface of the form in a traditional technique from Medieval stained glass called grisaille. In Blue Boy, a figure walks through the Blue Onion landscape, a nod to both the Meissen Blue Onion china from Thompson’s childhood and Gainsborough’s Blue Boy.

“What is most important to me is the emotional feeling of the work. I want to produce a positive affect in the viewer. I want people to feel uplifted. I want them to feel love and mystery.”

24

CAPPY THOMPSON Blue Boy, 2013 Vitreous enamels reverse-painted on blown glass 17.5 x 9 x 5.5 inches 25

CAPPY THOMPSON Moon, 2013 Vitreous enamels reverse-painted on blown glass 16 x 9 x 6.25 inches 26

CAPPY THOMPSON Secret Garden, 2013 Vitreous enamels reverse-painted on blown glass 15.5 x 13 x 5.5 inches

CAPPY THOMPSON Unicorns and Riders, 2013 Vitreous enamels reverse-painted on blown glass 16.25 x 11.5 x 5 inches 27

VERUSKA VAGEN

V

eruska Vagen’s painterly portraits in fused glass radiate warmth, evoking bygone eras and infusing them with fresh life. Her mosaic technique, which she named dot de verre, is a meticulous and methodical process that combines her training as a painter with her love of glass. These iconic images from the early- to mid-20th century are inspired by her grandmother, who she recently learned was as stage actress in Prague in the 1920s. In the penetrating gaze of the alluring and melancholic Rose or the coy downcast eyes of the Gypsy, intimate and intriguing portraits emerge before our eyes. Vagen deftly demonstrates the timelessness of the human face as a gathering ground for human emotion.

“In focusing intently on a revered artwork—perhaps choosing a mere segment to study—one becomes intimately involved, even lost within the piece. The journey of revisiting an image perhaps centuries old and with a different material brings new life to the beloved visage or composition and a fresh way of experiencing it. Exchanging paint with tiny glass dots allows the viewer’s eye to become the palette. The visual mixing of colors thus embraces Seurat and Pointillists, in addition to the great artist of other eras to whom I pay tribute and from which my pieces are inspired.”

28

VERUSKA VAGEN In the Wind, 1903, after Waterhouse Dot de verre mosaic mounted on black glass 15.5 x 12 inches 29

VERUSKA VAGEN Rose, 1920s, after Armstrong Dot de verre mosaic mounted on black glass 10.5 x 15.5 inches 30

VERUSKA VAGEN Gypsy, 1920s, after Busi Dot de verre mosaic mounted on black glass 11.25 x 17.5 inches 31

ULRICA HYDMAN-VALLIEN

B

old black lines, a Fauvist palette, and distinct brushstrokes define the stylized drawings on glass of Swedish artist Ulrica HydmanVallien. Shapes of antiquity (Hydman-Vallien was originally a ceramicist and was well-versed in classic vase forms) are given modern touches (jug handles become ear-like protuberances) and adorned with contemporary expressionist drawing. Graphic faces and mythical motifs are distilled, sometimes down to a series of geometrical forms and lines, to intensify human emotions and eccentricities. Though highly trained in many artistic genres, her work expresses a sense of the naïve that defines folk artists, and the way she expressed human emotion was equally visceral and intuitive.

“I have always enjoyed painting and drawing. Glass has become my canvas. My paintings on glass are colorful with distinct black lines. Stubborn and courageous, I have followed my own way and my work has remained constant. My work consists of a set of symbols. One symbol is the snake. When I was three years old I sat down in a grass snake’s nest in my parent’s garden and played with the white eggs and emerging hatchlings until my mother saw me and screamed.”

32

ULRICA HYDMAN-VALLIEN Vase, 2016 Blown glass with glass enamel painting 14 x 12 x 5.75 inches

ULRICA HYDMAN-VALLIEN Painted Vase, 2016 Blown glass with glass enamel painting 10.75 x 11 x 8 inches 33

ULRICA HYDMAN-VALLIEN Vase, 2016 Blown glass with glass enamel painting 14.25 x 11 x 11.5 inches 34

ULRICA HYDMAN-VALLIEN Vase, 2016 Blown glass with glass enamel painting 13 x 10 x 11.5 inches 35

BERTIL VALLIEN

S

wedish artist Bertil Vallien takes viewers on a journey of interiority, his process of casting glass in sand and suspending objects in the molten glass resulting in geologic textures, mineral-like pigmentation, and interesting forms. Layers—both physical and psychological— are created through a multistep process that begins with carefully drawn blueprints. An exploration of the subconscious, a variety of universal archetypes and symbols allow viewers to layer on their own perspectives. The surface of Core II is a craggy and radiant study in metallurgy and psychology, part archaeological excavation, part dream analysis. A supine bust peers up through the radiant blue glass underground of Cloud II, while the surface is part lunar landscape, part ancient runic panorama.

“Sketching is the starting point. I constantly draw, make plans on paper while listening to music... Sandcast glass is liberating. It provides the same degree of freedom as a blank sheet of paper. There are qualities of sandcast glass that I like, such as the way sand creates a crust, a shell distorting the inside beauty. The contrast between the rough surface and the clean “universe” inside..."

36

BERTIL VALLIEN Core II, 2016 Cast glass 5.25 x 5.75 x 5.75 inches 37

BERTIL VALLIEN Cloud II, 2017 Cast glass 5.5 x 5.82 x 5.7 inches 38

BERTIL VALLIEN History, 2017 Cast glass 3.94 x 5.3 x 5.3 inches 39

JEN VIOLETTE

C

reativity is often sparked by the simplest pleasures, and for artist Jen Violette those pleasures include her gardens, her rural Vermont surroundings, and the natural world around her. Residing and working in an old farmhouse, with its connected studio, means living and breathing the inspirations for her art daily. In harmony with her surroundings, and together with the passion for painting and wood and metalworking that she learned from a young age, art feels very entwined with Violette’s life. Her Nine Branches delight in the elemental simplicity of budding limbs. The sculpture’s nascent flowers, like the flawless green apple of Offering Hand, are formed using slightly heightened colors that intensify their presence.

“I spend a lot of time walking in the woods near our rural Vermont home, and I’m often inspired by small twigs and leaves I find scattered underfoot. I enjoy studying their forms, colors and textures and welcome the challenge of figuring out how to recreate them in molten glass.”

40

JEN VIOLETTE A Walk in the Woods, 2019 Hot sculpted glass 36 x 17 inches 41

JEN VIOLETTE Seedlings Emerging, 2019 Hot sculpted glass 12 x 10 inches 42

JEN VIOLETTE Offering Hand, 2018 Hot sculpted glass 6.25 x 8 x 3 inches 43

DAVID WALTERS

D

avid Walters begins by blowing a milky white glass into serpentine vessels—distorted eggs at times festooned with hats, hyperbolic pitchers and vases, toy cars, and other fantastic shapes. They become the canvas for his minimally-colored, exquisitely-rendered drawings. Though the work uses a deeply personal vocabulary, we are all able to relate to the struggle to overcome darkness and embrace the hope of the human spirit. Walters shows us that we need to look within, not without, to find our own fulfillment.

“I’m inspired by many different artists and could give fine examples of those, but what I find most inspiring is the human story. The things we intend to do seem to serve as the footprints in the journey toward the larger idea, which is to find meaning in our lives. The work we choose to do then more or less becomes a detail, though an important one, so long as the intention that gives it wings has integrity. I believe that’s where the soul of a thing stirs. I see fascinating examples of it every day. In art, music, science and people who display great selflessness. It is the intention of things that has worth and inspires.”

44

DAVID WALTERS MAGA-vision, 2019 Blown glass 9 x 10 x 9 inches 45

DAVID WALTERS Coming Soon, 2019 Blown glass 13 x 9 x 9 inches 46

DAVID WALTERS Heated Seats, 2019 Blown glass 12 x 8 x 8 inches 47

HIROSHI YAMANO

R

everence for nature is a guiding principal in Japanese culture, while elegant restraint is a hallmark of their aesthetic. Hiroshi Yamano’s glass vessels are gorgeously painted with peaceful scenes of nature—unfurling blossoms, delicate birds, and striated skies. There is a sense of hushed movement, as the artist visually captures the poetry of flora and fauna and lures the viewer into an easy communion with nature.

Collaboration Vessel #1 has both painted and blown-glass fish, a motif the artist uses often as an alter ego to express his own experience of traversing the oceans between east and west, both figuratively and literally throughout his career.

"As I grow older, I find myself wanting to spend more time in nature for the peace of mind that it brings to me. I value the simplicity and quiet that I encounter there, surrounded by the beauty of the Japanese landscape. My art is a reflection of that beauty; nature is the source of my creativity. In my work I want to interpret the feelings and sensations of having a close connection to nature, and through it share the beauty of the changing seasons in Japan with the viewer."

48

HIROSHI YAMANO From East to West: Nagare #39, 2008 Blown, silverleafed,electroplated,engraved glass 13.5 x 9.5 x 5 inches

HIROSHI YAMANO Collaboration Vessel #1, 2017 Blown and sculpted glass with metal leaf, Japanese ink and paint In collaboration with Sachiko Tuda 10 x 11 x 9 inches 49

DRAWN TO GLASS May 11 to May 27, 2019 I want to thank the thirteen artists who are part of this exhibition for their creativity and commitment to communicate using glass as the medium. Coming from an illustration and painting background, I have been thinking of this theme for some time now. In addition to procuring the glass sculpture, either by blowing, casting, sculpting or fusing, these artists spend days or months working with the image, watching it evolve and change, allowing new ideas to come to mind during the process.

This has been a gratifying experience to curate a show that features artists we represent who are drawn to the narrative capacity of the medium, either as a surface or support. It was important to include a cross-section of artists who are at different points in their careers, who work within the narrative theme. There are many conversations going on here! We hope you enjoy the presentation and can come to the gallery to see the art in person.

Kim Saul 50

CREDITS Design: Jeanne Koles and Kim Saul Essay: Jeanne Koles Photography: Gabrial Urbanek , p 11; Russell Johnson, p 13-15, 20-31, 47-47 and back cover; Kim Saul, 5p 9, 33-39; All other images by the artist.

Š Schantz Galleries, 2019 3 Elm Street, Stockbridge, MA 01262 (413) 298-3044 www.schantzgalleries.com kim@schantzgalleries.com

51

DRAWN TO GLASS

May 11 to May 27, 2019 Schantz Galleries Stockbridge 52