Featured Artist
Featured Artist
by Elizabeth Steinebach on June 24, 2010
Filed Under: STAINED GLASS ART
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Who else remembers this image?
It was 1976 and Robert Jekyll was just beginning to put Artists in Stained Glass together, in Toronto. Out on the west coast this man was already well into his stained glass career, with peers like Dan Fenton, Paul Marioni and Peter Mollica.
Image from 'Stained Glass from Mind to Light', stained glass by Narcissus Quagliata, Stained Glass Suicide - 1975
Anyone want to try and price all that beautiful handmade red antique glass? As I recall this panel was just a bit larger that full size. Narcissus painted, acid etched and broke rules even before we knew there were stained glass rules. What incredible freedom.
Enjoy.
by Elizabeth Steinebach on June 23, 2010 Filed Under: STAINED GLASS ART
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Dan Fenton's - the passing of migratory sounds
Image from "New Glass - Stained glass for the age of handmade houses", by Otto B Rigan with photographs by Charles Frizzell.
Unfortunately not one of the many wonderful color plates in the book. It is still lovely in black and white. Dan is quoted as saying this piece was inspired by music - especially Miles Davis's. The soft triangular shapes are delicious with movement, particularly difficult to capture in a two dimensional work.
Enjoy.
by Elizabeth Steinebach on June 22, 2010 Filed Under: STAINED GLASS ART
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Saint Mark on Prophet Daniel's shoulders
Just because.
I came across this thin pamphlet about Chartres windows, while cleaning the studio. Dated from 1981, it almost looks like a news letter. The accompanying article is in French by Etienne Charpentier, who might probably be related to Louis Charpentier, who wrote 'the mysteries of chartres catherdral'.
I love the rich blues and the incredibly expressive faces. At first glance, the eyes look really intense. But when you take a second look they are very ovoid and almost too big - and yet, totally riveting.
Simply for your viewing pleasure.
full cartoon
by Elizabeth Steinebach on May 4, 2010 Filed Under: NEWS
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Putting the Art back into Stained Glass.
Appreciating Stained Glass
What makes a good piece of stained glass?
How do design and construction work together? Or independently?
Where is the innovation in stained glass?
In this section lets look at the construction of stained glass in it basic forms, in order to learn how to separate quality from inferior work.
Glass:
Not all glass is created equal. In ancient times there was no other means for making glass, other than by hand. It was full of impurities or contaminates which rendered it unique, hand working or tooling created irregularities on the surface or decoration as the workers became more adept at it. Nothing much changed for a very long time. A kiln to melt the ingredients, skilled workers to blow or spin glass into flat sheets.
These techniques are still in use creating the most expensive and beautiful glass, stained glass workers can buy today. Referred to as "antique glass" not because the glass is old, but because of how it is made, this glass is still made by hand. There are fewer and fewer of these glass manufacturers making glass in our world of every increasing fuel costs, required not only to melt the raw ingredients and safely cool the sheet glass, but also the shipping of materials to the factory and then the finished glass to the marketplace. As factories close, the skilled labour is lost. Less demand means cost cutting, discontinued colours or lines and eventual factory closings. Stained glass workers have seen huge increases in the cost of their most basic and beloved material glass.
There is also glass manufactured by highly mechanized factories. They too suffer from the same fuel cost issues, however their longevity is more secure because they can mass produce glass without the same kind of hands on labour costs. The glass that is mass produced and generally easily commercially available, is totally repeatable in color and consistent in thickness. It can also be textured. It is in no way inferior to antique glass as a piece of glass, in its ability to keep rain, wind and snow out, however antique glass has a decidedly evocative quality, clarity of color and internal radiance, that cannot be recreated by commercial manufactures try as they might, they cannot emulate it.
The middle ground of these two extremes, becomes a blending of hand made elements during the process that is still has highly mechanized. Usually smaller studios, specializing in a particular kind of glass, fill the need of niche markets.
Review:
antique glass is hand made, the most expensive, offering clarity of color and radiance. This glass will benefit from additional treatments like traditional
painting, enamel or silver stain. Flashed antique can also be acid etched.
commercially mass produced glass, least expensive glass, repeatable colours, readily available. Some glass is now being made compatible to facilitate fusing.
mid range – niche glass manufacturers, definitely more expensive than mass production, production can be limited, not as easy to obtain. Some glass is compatible for fusing, others not. Successful traditional painting must be experimented.
Assembly:
There are two main methods of assembling glass, with a few innovations becoming more popular. Function and craftsmanship are very closely related and though not absolute their are some traditional views on assembly, that have stood the test of time.
Lead:
The original method of assembly that allowed many individually pieces of coloured glass, to be assembled collectively. Lead cames create the matrix that surround each piece of glass and where the lead cames met or intersected each other, solder was applied to hold the joints together.
Lead cames come in a variety of widths and heights, profiles can vary, as can the strength of a came. Easy to cut, relatively easy to bend into the requirements of the matrix, weather durable, repairable, lead is, and has been, the matrix choice for hundreds of years.
The down side is that lead cames do contain lead. If handled carelessly, if proper precautions are not used doing specific aspects of construction, there is risk to the stained glass worker. These risks are reduced by proper personal safety equipment. Good practices now include recovery of lead cut offs for recycling and there are monitoring systems to ensure air/exhaust, leaving studios is clean of contaminates. These safety protocols do come with additional costs, that stained glass workers, as few as twenty years ago, did not incur.
Once the stained glass is finished and/or installed lead does not pose any risk of flaking or chipping, as does old paint, that contains lead. It is a material that certainly requires respect and responsibility. Where this responsibility has continued, is to the very manufacturers of the lead cames, becoming more environmentally conscious and responsible, as well.
Lead cames function best in flat planes. This makes the use of lead cames the best choice in windows that are architectural, meaning stained glass that is installed into an opening in a building. The lead cames can be further weather resistant by the addition of putty, filling in the space between the glass and lead came. External re-enforcements are easily attached to support larger panels.
Lead cames can be used for autonomous panels, for gently curved slopes, as in domes or skylights and has been used in the making of lamps. Lead is a heavy material and may deform without proper reinforcement.
Review:
Lead cames should be clean and shiny.
All joints should be soldered on both sides with sufficient solder so as to make where the joint was, undetectable.
The solder joints should be relatively equal in proportion and attractive.
There should be evidence that the window has been puttied.
Reinforcements should not detract from the overall design.
Copper foil:
A rather modern technological variation of holding various pieces of glass together. Some say an innovation of Louis Comfort Tiffany, primarily to utilize the cut offs from his large window commissions. This pieces were then cut smaller to accommodate curvatures, which then became the famous Tiffany lampshades.
Usually small pieces of glass wrapped around the perimeter with a copper foil, then soldered in its entirely, front and back. The solder binding to the copper foil only, creates the matrix that holds everything together. The soldering should appear neat and smooth with a generous enough amount of solder to be sufficient matrix.
Copperfoil does not require putty/weather resisting because the foil adheres to the glass, without a gap. However copperfoil is not suitable for architectural applications. The adhesive does dry out allowing for water penetration.
Copperfoil also comes in various widths to accommodate a variety of glass thicknesses and gives the artist freedom to create various looking thicknesses of line. The copperfoil comes in various backings, so that when used with clear glasses, that the foil can be matched to the desired finish – silver, if the solder is left natural, black, if the solder is darkened, or copper – if a coppering agent is used. Copperfoil should be fixed neatly and evenly so no undo amount of backing is showing.
Copperfoil has many applications – it can be used in autonomous panels, it can be re-inforced for larger works, but must be protected from the elements. Copperfoil is best used for three dimensional work, especially in lampshade making.
There is still some risk to the stained glass worker as the solder has lead in it. With copperfoil, requiring so much solder to create the matrix, the risk is not insignificant. There are new lead free products being attempted, but as of yet, the stained glass industry still prefers the the freedom and reliability of lead based solder.
Review:
Neat and even application of copperfoil to the glass edge.
Appropriate use of coloured foil backing.
Neat and smooth soldering.
Evenness of line is desired, but not necessary when used artistically.
Enough solder to create sufficient matrix strength.
Can be re-enforced internally – thus invisibly.
Solder left natural or coloured, should be clean and shiny.
Fusing – Slumping – Warm glass:
Stained glass fusing/slumping is a relatively new innovation. Fusing and slumping eliminates the technical skill of mastering either matrix. It has already gone through it's tough initiation into the stained glass fold, because of a few pioneers who demanded more from stained glass. Not wanting to be confined by the matrix of either lead or copperfoil, fused glass is free from these constraints, allowing for easy layering of color and shape. Fusing glasses together could add detail to otherwise too difficult or ungainly traditional matrix methods and as the medium launched into its own full expression, entire surfaces were fused.
A couple of things had to occur for it to have taken off, as it has.
First the cost of kilns had to come down and with that, all the new gadgetry to make them cost effective to use. A wide variety of sizes are available, such as front load or top load models, single shelf or multiple shelves to maximize the heating chamber, depending on the artists requirements. Kiln companies have done a great deal of educating about their products and have offered many courses to help generate interest.
The second big innovation is within the glass manufacturers realm of glass chemistry. Prior to about twenty years ago, glass recipes were unique to the color. The chemical mix had it's own unique rate of expansion and contraction. If you tried to fuse or slump incompatible glass, that is, glass whose chemistry was different enough to expand and contract differently, the project was doomed to failure – by cracking or worse, exploding in the kiln. Many of the large stained glass manufacturers, seeing the potential for fusing and slumping, have created product lines of glass that are now fully compatible within that product line. This has created much more safety and reliability.
The down side of any fused or slumped glass, is that once it does crack or break, the piece in its entirety is thrown away and replaced. At the present there are no techniques to restore or repair this kind of work. The technical skill is assembling the various pieces of glass and controlling the kiln.
Review:
Fusing can be incorporated into stained glass or stand alone.
Colors should be shiny and bright.
I hope everyone can start to use this information with their local art groups - opening dialogue to create better understanding of what is involved in making good stained glass. And I appreciate it has been generalized, so if you feel I've missed something important that should be addressed, let me know.
by Elizabeth Steinebach etal on April 10, 2010 Filed Under: ESSAYS
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Putting the Art back into Stained Glass.
Why we need to educate:
Recently having a dreadful experience with my local arts and crafts group, I wondered if this was a common occurrence for stained glass artists.
The spring show, for the second year in a row, completely disrespected the medium of stained glass, underutilized the space and downplayed the very existence of work, by hiding pieces in corners, behind other large displays, and on plinths so low, I watched people stumble into them. I won't go into any more detail and say in all fairness that, the pottery, the textiles, the jewelry, the wood, the multi-media – essentially everything that was not painted and simply hung on a wall, in my opinion, was sorely disrespected, as well. So perhaps not a specific slight to stained glass, but an equal opportunity discrimination for anything other than wall art.
Such local groups with their various committees, partially funded by public money or not, are not exempt from acting on a hierarchy of art mediums. Just like our bias is to promote stained glass, each art group can have it's own favoritism of medium. I would venture that many committees do not appreciate nor understand any other medium other than paint, so do not know what to do with three dimensional objects or how to hang stained glass well.
Plainly, stained glass requires light, where light passes through the art, illuminating it from within, rather than being merely reflected from it. Unfortunately most of these kind of art committees are made up of painters or whatever the majority within the group is, so the lot stained glass is given, will likely not change. Thus it is imperative we must educate the very art organizations that we join.
So with this in mind, I'm putting together these articles for many of us in stained glass. Whether you print them out for your local art association or direct them to find these articles here at AISG, know that you are not alone. Share your stories, here. If all of us, in our respective corners of the world, start educating each other and these groups, that we need to help grow our businesses, change will occur.
Know too, that our memberships fees, show fees and any other fees help these associations survive and thrive. So when there is so much evidence to suggest that they are doing very little for stained glass, well then, we do have some financial power to influence change. These groups need us in a symbiotic relationship, to support them - through membership and sales commissions, so the relationship needs to be mutually beneficial, with support, dialogue, sales and trust for stained glass. If not, stop being a member of that group.
I sent out a private email to the membership to see if I was the only unfortunate stained glass artist. Over 25% of you gave me feed back – that's well over one in four, having experienced some kind of difficulty with their local art organization. And I'm getting more responses everyday.
These stories should concern all of us. If recognized art groups are treating their own stained glass members, albeit unconsciously, so poorly, not only does it diminish stained glass in general, but also the buying public sees this at the shows. This invisible message being, that this ignorance/trivializing behavior towards stained glass, is acceptable. Is it any wonder that the perceived value of stained glass is what it is? That indeed, stained glass is not art and not really worth buying.
Here are some of the worst behaviors experienced by AISG members:
Stained glass is being broken by well meaning, but unskilled nor trained, art association volunteers.
Stained glass work, now damaged, is rejected for admittance into the show.
The art association refuses to pay for the repair or purchase of the damaged stained glass.
Understandably, stained glass is fragile by nature. However carrying it incorrectly, storing it incorrectly, not anticipating the weight of stained glass will lead to damage. These are the issues for the hanging committees and their inexperience and seemingly oblivious ignorance is causing damage, as mentioned above. The unfortunate reality is that a stained glass artist who has worked just as hard as any other artist has work damaged beyond acceptance into the show, now looses the potential income from the sale and the exposure that the show would have offered. And when the art group refuse to acknowledge their role in the damage, the artist has now lost the time and money of creating their art.
Stained glass designed as an autonomous panel, to be displayed with natural sunlight, is being hung on an interior walls.
In this situation, for the entire duration of the show, the stained glass artists work, is shown in the worst possible way. What is the buying public to think of this? Are they going to be able to appreciate the work? Will the stained glass sell? And worse, this stained glass artist's reputation has been tarnished, by the very art association that is supposed to support art and artists, because the public will not grasp that it was the art association that displayed it this way, but simply thinking stained glass is just ugly.
There have also been various outright refusals of stained glass into shows. Despite the show having the word glass in it's title, flat panel stained glass was not welcomed.
Some venues used by art groups may or may not have suitable windows.
Or lastly, a popular misconception is that stained glass is not art – and therefore not permitted in Art shows.
Discrimination thinly veiled, wastes the time of everyone. Yes, shows can be specific to specific mediums. However when a show does not clearly state its limitations, accepts show fees, only to reject work at the door, this is deplorable by any standard.
In a effort to be inclusive, art groups do try to find venues with windows for stained glass. Yet often these windows are too small, wrong shape, too high for public viewing, which again, by accepting the venue as suitable, puts stained glass on the fringe of the show. Also, if windows are separate from the primary display space and/or main events are at night, stained glass is again marginalized.
The 'art' verses 'craft' argument is lengthy and will be further discussed in another article. For the moment lets consider by whose authority is the stained glass condemned to be outlawed from such company. The continuum of stained glass is a broad one, from hobbyists to world renowned glass artists. Because there is such a huge variety of skill sets it is very important to educate regarding the differences and what separates quality work from inferior.
This art group ignorance equally accepts student pieces as well as banishes true stained glass artistry from participation, with no particular standard. There is such potential bias, ego and arrogance in this kind of rejecting. In most situations without any challenge, appeal or questioning, the artist has no recourse.
The area of awards and merit for stained glass has left much stained glass without any recognition of advances in techniques or innovation. If the art association volunteers are inexperienced, then the likelihood of the judges inexperience, should also come into question. Remember if the art organization is sympathetic to painters, the committees are going to find judges who will lend prestige and honor to that medium. This may mean that judges know nothing of stained glass and it's technical requirements. This explains why judges often select poorly made or poorly designed work. Without any appreciation of quality craftsmanship and design limitations or innovations, their uninformed choice maybe based on some other intrigue. Or in many cases stained glass is simply and completely over looked as art and worthy of any award or merit.
As we continue to ponder these issues, I hope many of you take the time to share your unique perspective in the forum. There are no easy answers nor a single definitive answer to fit the diverse circumstances, here, in the United States or abroad. However the more we talk about this, the better prepared we will become at avoiding such situations and raising the awareness of stained glass in a good way.
I would like to thank the following AISG members for their contributions:
Eleanor Brownridge - Turtle Creek Art Glass,
June Derksen - Junebug Designs,
Nancy Faust - Touch-o-Glass,
Scotty Giffen – Giffen Stained Glass
Kathryn Irwin - Art Zone,
Bev Hewitt - Gemini Art Glass
Kelly Anne Hooper - Glassworks Studio,
Andrea Kelter - Andrea Kelter Studio,
Julie Laframboise – Concept Art Studio
Lila Linquist - Lila's Glass,
M - Paned Expressions Studios,
Claire Morris - Tyskol Studio,
Jo Perez - Dark Hollow Glass,
Elizabeth Steinebach - Stained Glass Artisan
by Elizabeth Steinebach on March 13, 2010 Filed Under: NEWS
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Beachcomber by Andrea Kelter
It's been a busy winter season and I've been a bit remiss in getting our member interviews back on the web. To start off 2010 - Welcome Andrea Kelter: Earthglass Stained Glass Studio.
How was it that you started working with stained glass?
I began working with stained glass after a good friend showed me a stained glass gift he had received from friends. I was awestruck by the way the light played through the glass and created an almost surreal glow, and I was intrigued by the elements of design in the glass. Because I am a professional graphic artist, the capabilities of design in glass particularly fascinated me – so I purchased all of the essentials for a stained glass studio (including lots of books), went online and did lots of reading, then went ahead and began to make glass pieces. About three months in, I realized I absolutely loved working with glass and wanted to create original pieces, so I purchased Dragonfly's Glass Eye, and began designing and executing original pieces. I was very fortunate to find an outstanding gallery, Serendipin' Art, in St. Andrews (by-the-Sea), New Brunswick, that wanted to feature my art and slowly but surely, I am beginning to make a name for myself within this medium.
Where does the inspiration for designs/work come from?
Most of my designs are inspired by Atlantic Canada's coastal scenery and the animals which inhabit this part of the world. I draw strength and inspiration from the ocean, particularly the Atlantic Ocean, and I believe that our oceans are the source of all life. Currently, I am working on a new series of pieces depicting North Atlantic right whales, which happen to be the world's most endangered mammal, and I'm really excited about the way they are turning out. There are so many wonders of Nature on our planet, that a lifetime is just barely enough time to scratch the surface, and compared to some artists, I got a late start!
Who influenced you the most, or helped you along the way?
I found an artist in the Muskokas in Ontario who has a studio called "Torr 'Lith". Her work is utterly mesmerizing, and it is a goal of mine to achieve the level of glass design and execution that she has. I've never met her, but she is a truly uniquely gifted individual. Robert Oddy's work is also a source of inspiration for me – although his work is very different from mine, it is his impeccable quality and innovative use of glass that I find makes me want to stretch my own ideas further.
When have you ever been frustrated/disappointed with the material?
There have been times when I have designed a piece that I find utterly stunning on paper, but when I executed it, no matter how carefully I chose the glass and crafted the piece, I was dissatisfied with the degree of "life" in it when it was completed. Conversely, there have been times I designed a piece that I liked on paper, but when it was done, I found it a hundred times more pleasing than the initial design. I'm working on a custom transom window for a couple who own mines in the Northwest Territories right now. Their home is in coastal Maine, and they want to remember the beauty of the NWT mountains and the aurora borealis in their window. I loved the design when it was completed, but now that the glass is cut and I'm in the final stages of assembly, I know the piece is much, much more dramatic and visually stunning in real life than it was on paper.
What is your favorite glass and why? How did you use it?
I have a few favorite types of glass – depending upon the design in which they are being placed. I absolutely love Bullseye glass, find it very cutable and love the way it both reflects and refracts light, and also absorbs and transmits it. I use it in a lot of my lamps and most of my panels. Youghiogheny glass is another big favorite of mine – it's a little more difficult to cut, but well worth the effort for the quality it gives a piece, particularly lamps. For my ocean-inspired panels, I also use a fair bit of Spectrum and Armstrong glass because the movement within their streakies and wispies, and the many blues and greens they offer, really effectively capture the moods of the ocean.
thanks Andrea!
Check out more of her work in the members gallery.
by Elizabeth Steinebach on March 10, 2010 Filed Under: NEWS
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GAAC Conference in Montreal, Canada
The Glass Art Association of Canada conference will be held in Montreal, CANADA, from May 26th-30th, 2010.
Please spread the news. High resolution poster available at [communication@espaceverre.qc.ca]
by Lucy Fayerman/ posted by elizabeth on March 10, 2010 Filed Under: NEWS
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Hello,
My name is Lucy Fayerman, and I am a Conference and Summer Programs Coordinator at UC Berkeley Conference Services.
I am writing to let you know that UC Berkeley hosts Summer Conferences every year, and we are interested in welcoming new groups to stay with us. I am researching arts related associations and organizations to host their conferences and workshops at UC Berkeley. Conference Services offers meeting space, accommodations, and meals for their participants. Please visit Conference Services page for more information: http://conferenceservices.berkeley.edu/summerconf index.html
Also, we run Summer Visitor Housing, which offers an affordable alternative to hotels for anyone who is visiting the Bay Area. Participants can make individual reservations, or we can book a room block for their stay. Please visit our SVH website for more information: http://conferenceservices.berkeley.edu/summervis index.html
If you are interested in holding an event in Berkeley or are just
visiting and need a place to stay in the summer, consider UC Berkeley.
Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions. Thank you for your time!
by Elizabeth Steinebach on March 10, 2010 Filed Under: NEWS
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There may be a few of the warm glass crowd visiting the AISG site, so here's some news for you. AISG received information from MABI Firenze, a glass technology and color group from Italy. Mario Mariani - is the contact person- info@mabifirenze.com. They have PDF catalogues of their products which include glass sticks, rods, confetti, spaghetti and 1000 flowers - Milfleur - and murrina rods and frits. They are a small business eager to ship abroad. Perhaps their products could find a way into some of your warm/hot glass work.
by James Robbins/posted by elizabeth on March 10, 2010 Filed Under: NEWS
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(This came in the AISG email box the other day - anybody nearby interested in the gallery or workshop space, should contact James, sounds like they are going to have a great facility.)
IDAHO ARTS COMMUNITY CENTER
Hello, we are opening Southern Idahos Largest Community Art Gallery On May 1st 2010 with the generous support of the Karcher Mall. We will have 9000 sq ft of space which will consist of an art gallery, a workshop area, a custom picture frame shop, and a gift shop. Some of your fellow artists have contacted us about having space within the Gallery and workshop area. I would like to discuss this with you. I can be reached at (208) 467-3643.
Sincerely,
James P. Robbins