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Michael Janis Finalist in 2022 Contemporary Craft Prize

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Michael Janis, “Allowing Our Past to Become Part of Ourselves” detail, 2022, fused glass, glass powder imagery. Photo by Pete Duvall.

17 national and international finalists have been selected for this biennial exhibition in glass art, featuring newly created, innovative works.

Michael Janis glass art - title "Allowing Our Past to Become Part of Ourselves" 60"H x 40' W fused glass, glass powder imagery aluminum

Glass is itself a transformation: created when ordinary sand encounters extreme heat. In this breathtaking exhibition, glass is transformed again, this time by 17 contemporary artists from across the globe. The resulting work pushes the boundary of traditional craft techniques and takes glass from the realm of the ordinary to the extraordinary.

Transformation 11: Contemporary Works in Glass is Contemporary Craft’s 2022 Elizabeth R. Raphael Founder’s Prize juried exhibition. The winning artist and their work will be announced and presented at the public opening of the exhibition on Friday, September 9, 2022, where they will receive a cash prize. The 2022 prize will be awarded in the category of glass, and must meet the requirement that it has been made within the last 12 months and addresses the theme of “transformation.” Seventeen contemporary artists from across the globe explore creative concepts and innovative approaches in their use of the glass medium, with the winning artist sending additional works to demonstrate the breadth of their work.

The 2022 Raphael Prize finalists are: Dean Allison, Pittsburgh, PA; Eunsuh Choi, Rochester, WI; Donald Friedlich, Madison, WI; Michael Janis, Washington, DC; Lauren Kalman, Detroit, MI; David King, Danville, KY; Eriko Kobayashi, Carbondale, IL; Weston Lambert, Tacoma, WA; Patrick Martin, Emporia, KS; Hisayoshi Muto, Yatomi, Aichi, Japan; Aya Oki, San Bernardino, CA; Miroslava Ptackova, Zlín, Zlínský kraj, Czech Republic; David Schnuckel, Rochester, NY; Michaela Spruzinova, Ústí Nad Labem, brná, Czech Republic; Ben Wright, Stanwood, WA; Ayano Yoshizumi, Everard Park, SA, Australia; and Hoseok Youn, Toledo, OH.

The jury for the 2022 prize includes Anna Rothfuss, Project Development Manager, Derix Art Glass Consultants, LLC U.S., Portland, OR; Heather McElwee, Randi & L. Van V. Dauler, Jr. Executive Director, Pittsburgh Glass Center, Pittsburgh, PA; Alexandra Raphael, enameller, London, England; Catherine Raphael, metalsmith and writer, Pittsburgh, PA; Rachel Saul Rearick, Executive Director, and Kate Lydon, Director of Exhibitions (retired), Contemporary Craft, Pittsburgh, PA

Contemporary Craft, 5645 Butler Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15201

Contemporary Craft hours: Mon-Sat: 10 AM – 4 PM

September 9, 2022 – March 18, 2023

This opening is free and open to the public.

ABOUT CONTEMPORARY CRAFT

Contemporary Craft presents contemporary art in craft media by regional, national, and international artists. Contemporary Craft offers cutting edge exhibitions focusing on multicultural diversity and contemporary art, as well as a range of artist-led studio workshops, community engagement programs, and a store. Located at 5645 Butler Street in the Upper Lawrenceville neighborhood of Pittsburgh, PA. For more information, visit www.contemporarycraft.org

Posted in 21st century glass, aacg, american craft, american glass, contemporary craft, frit powder, fulbright scholar michael janis, fused, fused glass, fused glass imagery, glass frit powder imagery, kiln fused glass, kiln-formed, kiln-formed glass, mike janis, narrative glass, neues glas, outstanding artist, pittsburgh, studio art glass, studio glass movement, top glass artist, twenty first century glass, united states, warm glass, Washington School of Glass, стекло искусство новое, فن الزجاج الجديد, 新的玻璃, 美国玻璃艺术家

Janis & Tate @ Toronto’s Sandra Ainsley Gallery

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Michael Janis & Tim Tate at Toronto’s Sandra Ainsley Gallery June 4 – July 30, 2022

Toronto, Canada’s famed Sandra Ainsley Gallery present the narrative glass artworks by WGS Co-Directors Tim Tate and Michael Janis. The show, titled “One Story is Not Enough” featured works by each artist as a solo, and a number of their collaborative wall murals.

Michael Janis’ imagery in frit powder is reflected in the gallery’s piano surface.

When Michael Janis and Tim Tate met, almost 20 years ago, they discovered a shared fascination of narrative sculpture- one that seeks to arrive at an image that is both unflinchingly candid in physical representation and psychologically evasive. Working together, they are interested in the simultaneous read of an immediately recognizable image that asks the viewer to linger over history and meanings that unfurl more slowly. Mark, line and material become an extension of touch in the act of representation. The relationship of hand to subject, negotiated through the material, can elicit a response of both visual and tactile.

“The Poetry of Everyday Objects” by Michael Janis & Tim Tate, 2021; Size:6H x 6W’; Cast Glass

With these confines they create work in many techniques, but if you stand slightly back and see their history a huge thread of interconnected stories weave through their work from day one. The beauty comes into focus and the viewer sees the edges of a world not dissimilar to this one, but so much more thoughtful.

Detail – “The Poetry of Everyday Objects”, Michael Janis & Tim Tate

They present this glimpse into that alternative world, seemingly unstuck in time somewhere between past and future.

Tim Tate, Lenticular series, 2022, each panel 41″H x 41″W, lenticular prints

Sandra Ainsley Gallery
The Warehouse
100 Sunrise Avenue, Unit 150
Toronto, Ontario Canada M4A 1B3

Posted in 21st century glass, 21st century sculpture, figurative art, fine art, fullbright scholar, fused glass imagery, glass art, glass frit powder imagery, glass sculpture, glass show, imagery in glass, kiln-formed glass, kilncast, michael janis, mike janis, narrative glass, painterly glass, sandra ainsley gallery, sgraffitto, sgrafitto, Tim Tate, top glass artist, twenty first century glass, twenty first century sculpture, united states, فن الزجاج الجديد, 美国玻璃艺术家 | Tagged ,

Sean Robinson @ Cid Bolduc Gallery

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WGS Studio artist Sean Robinson responded to the call for artists at Cid Bolduc Gallery in Provincetown, MA. Sean’s glass art was immediately selected for exhibition for the month of July! Congrats Sean!!

Artist Sean Robinson works his magic with glass at Cid Bolduc Gallery.

The Cid Bolduc Gallery (CBG) is located at 53 Badford Street in Provincetown, MA.

CBG is open for the 2022 season on Thursday, Friday and Saturday from noon to 5 p.m.

Posted in contemporary art glass, contemporary craft, cool glass

Michael Janis on Art Clinic Online Saturday, June 25th.

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On Saturday, June 25th, WGS Co-Director Michael Janis is the guest artist presenting on online talk for the Art Clinic Online @ Glen Echo’s Stone Tower Studio.

sgraffito glass imagery of figure
Michael Janis; “Current State”, 2020. Kilnformed glass, glass powder imagery, 4 panels – each 20” x 30”

The Art Clinic Online (ACO) community aims to create a supportive arts environment in an online setting. The ACO features online presentations where members can ask them questions about their vision and create a forum for the equal exchange of art ideas and art information as well as opportunities.

If you are interested in joining the online presentation, email Mariana for the zoomlink- mkastrin@gmail.com

Posted in 21st century glass, 21st century sculpture, bullseye glass, kiln fused glass, kiln-formed, kiln-formed glass, kilncast, стекло искусство новое, فن الزجاج الجديد, アメリカのガラス芸術, 美国玻璃艺术家 | Tagged , ,

Visit 2022 Venice Biennale Online!

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Join the Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass (AACG) this Tuesday, June 21, at 2 p.m. (Eastern Time) for the next Fired Up! education series program. Art critic / curator William Warmus will review artworks in glass at the 2022 Venice Biennale and talk about the 2022 exhibit for Glasstress.

View of Fondazione Berengo Art Space, Campiello della Pescheria 4

Bill just returned from visiting Venice and can give us great insights into how glass is being used in art today by artists from around the world. He will also talk about Glasstress, a project by Adriano Berengo to further Berengo’s mission to promote the use of glass in the world of contemporary art. The first Glasstress exhibition was launched in 2009 to establish a new platform for art made with glass and was founded as a collateral event of the Venice Biennale. This is the seventh edition of Glasstress, where Berengo Studios has brought together a group of leading contemporary artists from Europe, the United States, Latin America, Africa and China in an ambitious exhibition that explores the infinite creative possibilities of glass. The works are hosted inside the Berengo Art Space Foundation in Murano, an old abandoned furnace transformed a few years ago into a suggestive exhibition space.

Click HERE to register for this online event.

This program is open to the public. Feel free to invite others to attend.

Posted in "michael janis" glass, aacg, chris shea, GLASSTRESS, Tim Tate, venice biennale, william warmus | Tagged

One Story Is Not Enough – Tim Tate & Michael Janis in Toronto’s Sandra Ainsley Gallery

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Sandra Ainsley Gallery, Canada’s leading glass art gallery, presents a collaborative exhibition from Washington Glass School artists Tim Tate and Michael Janis titled “One Story is Not Enough“. The exhibition will feature their individual works along with joint pieces that highlight the narrative sculpture.

L-R: Tim Tate, Sandra Ainsley, Daniel Ainsley at the opening of “One Story Is Not Enough”.

Mark, line and material become an extension of touch in the act of representation. The relationship of hand to subject, negotiated through the material, can elicit a response of both visual and tactile.

Michael Janis’ kilncast glass L-R “The Color of Shadows” & “The Place Between Memories”

With these confines, Tim and Michael create works in many techniques, but if you stand slightly back and see their history, a huge thread of interconnected stories weave through their work from day one. The beauty comes into focus and the viewer sees the edges of a world not dissimilar to this one, but so much more thoughtful. They present this glimpse into that alternative world, seemingly unstuck in time somewhere between past and future.

On Friday, June 17, at 1 PM (Eastern time), the Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass (AACG) will hold an online zoom MeetUp and Tim Tate and Michael Janis will tour exhibition and talk about their careers and process. Join the AACG to watch it live, or else catch it on YouTube after Friday.

Click Here to register.

Sandra Ainsley Gallery, 100 Sunrise Ave, North York, ON M4A 1B3, Canada

Posted in 21st century glass, 21st century sculpture, american craft, american glass, art alliance for contemporary glass, art glass today, kiln-formed glass, michael janis, mike janis, narrative, narrative glass, Tim Tate, twenty first century glass, twenty first century sculpture, usa, стекло искусство новое, アメリカのガラス芸術, 最好的玻璃艺术, 美国新艺术雕塑 | Tagged

2022 Venice Biennale Showcases DC Area Artists

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Michael Janis Tim Tate Chris Shea venice biennale 2022 glasstress
“There’s A Big Hole In The Sky” – Collaborative sculpture by Tim Tate, Michael Janis, and Chris Shea. 

The Venice Biennale is an international art exhibition featuring architecture, visual arts, cinema, dance, music, and theatre that is held in the Castello district of Venice, Italy every two years during the summer. This year’s Venice Biennale includes a collateral event – ‘Glasstress’ – held at the historic Berengo Studios in Murano, Italy.

The 59th International Art Exhibition features a sculptural collaboration between DC glass artists Tim Tate, Michael Janis and Brandywine metal sculptor Chris Shea, representing the USA.

21st century glass sculpture art
Detail of Tate,Janis,Shea artwork showing cast glass and metalwork .

Chris Shea’s incredible metal work frames out Tim Tate’s lush fields of cast glass elements (detailed figures, flowers, insects) and in center, a glass sgraffito panel by Michael Janis.

A central concern in “There’s a Big Hole in The Sky” is that viewers need to abandon their apathy towards climate change. This monumental sculpture brings to light the effects of global warming on the earth as most areas will be facing frequent flooding. Despite the growing evidence of climate change, and humanity as the driver of that change, there remains a hardcore 20 percent or so that reject the whole notion of it and a healthy percentage that remain unconvinced that humans are causing it. And on top of those dismal statistics, many believe that climate change does not represent a threat to them. The artwork is an invitation to understand, to act, and to prepare. But if political solutions to climate change don’t materialize soon, it may also be an invitation to come to terms with loss.

washington glass school murano italy art sculpture
Image of installation at Berengo Studios in Murano, Italy.

From Biennale Press Release 

GLASSTRESS 2022

2 JUNE – 27 NOVEMBER 2022

BERENGO ART SPACE FOUNDATION

Venice, 2022 

At the same time as the 59th Venice Biennale, the seventh edition of GLASSTRESS, scheduled from June 2 to November 27, 2022, brings together a group of important contemporary artists from Europe, the United States, Latin America, Africa and China in an ambitious exhibition that explores the infinite creative possibilities of glass.

The works will be housed in the Berengo Art Space Foundation in Murano, an old abandoned furnace transformed a few years ago into an evocative exhibition space. On display will be works by artists who have already collaborated and exhibited at GLASSTRESS with Berengo Studio, such as Ai Weiwei, Jimmie Durham, Tony Cragg, Monira Al Qadiri, Thomas Schütte, as well as first-time attendees Vanessa Beecroft, María Magdalena Campos-Pons, Tim Tate, Paloma Varga Weisz and eL Seed, among others.

GLASSTRESS is a project by Adriano Berengo dedicated to promoting new connections between contemporary art and glass. Starting from its debut in 2009 as a side event of the Venice Biennale, over the years GLASSTRESS has made dozens of internationally renowned artists and designers passionate about the traditional craft of Murano glass blowing, who have tried their hand at creating suggestive and innovative works in glass with the support of the masters of Berengo Studio.

GLASSTRESS 2022 – ARTISTS

NEW ARTISTS

Vanessa Beecroft (Italy), María Magdalena Campos-Pons (Cuba), Judy Chicago (United States), Chiara Dynys (Italy), eL Seed (France), Leandro Erlich (Argentina), Ryan Gander (Great Britain), Michael Janis (United States), Alexander Evgenievich Ponomarev (Russia), Laurent Reypens (Belgium), Liam Scully (Great Britain), Chris Shea (United States), Paloma Varga Weisz (Germany), Osman Yousefzada (Great Britain).

RETURNING ARTISTS

Ai Weiwei (China), Monira Al Qadiri (Kuwait), Ayman Baalbaki (Lebanon), Tony Cragg (Great Britain), Jimmie Durham (United States), Jan Fabre (Belgium), Josepha Gasch-Muche (Germany), Kendell Geers ( South Africa), Marya Kazoun (Lebanon / Canada), Brigitte Kowanz (Austria), Karen LaMonte (United States), Tomáš Libertiny (Slovak Republic), Massimo Lunardon (Italy), Federica Marangoni (Italy), Prune Nourry (France), Anne Peabody (United States), Jaume Plensa (Spain), Laure Prouvost (France), Thomas Schütte (Germany), Sean Scully (United States), Wael Shawky (Egypt), Lino Tagliapietra (Italy), Tim Tate (United States) , Koen Vanmechelen (Belgium), Robert Wilson (United States), Rose Wylie (Great Britain), Erwin Wurm (Austria).

Posted in 21st century glass, 21st century sculpture, american glass, chris shea, glass art, glass sculpture, michael janis, mike janis, Tim Tate, twenty first century glass, venice biennale, washington glass school, wgs contemporary, стекло искусство новое, فن الزجاج الجديد, アメリカのガラス芸術, 玻璃艺术雕塑 | Tagged , , , ,

Coppin State University Presents Fired Up! – Baltimore’s First Glass Exhibit Since 1996.

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Fired Up! is a survey exhibition highlighting the diversity and innovation of artists working in contemporary glass around the mid-Atlantic Region, and features works by Chul Hyun Ahn, Anthony Corradetti, Oletha DeVane, John Henderson, Michael Janis, Emily Lamb, Tim McFadden, Soledad Salamé, Dr. Joyce J. Scott, Tim Tate, and Erwin Timmers.

Fired Up! includes objects and installations as distinct as their makers, examining glass as a sculptural medium for art and the many messages the media is capable of imparting. The United Nations General Council announced that 2022 be declared a United Nations International Year of Glass (IYOG), to celebrate the essential role glass has in Society.  Fired Up! is part of the events commemorating the IYOG, the 2022 Glass & Optical Materials Division (GOMD) Conference in Baltimore, the 60th Anniversary of the American Studio Glass Movement. The exhibition brings a distinct group of renown artists to students and admirers who wish to discover the creative possibilities in glass, while amplifying artists voices including members of the BIPOC, Latinx, LGBQT and immigrant communities.  This exhibition is made possible through the support of the GOMD, the American Ceramic Society, and Corning & Owens Corning who helped fund outreach to Baltimore City High schools.

Planned and Co-Curated by Howard Cohen of Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass with Amy Raehse of Goya Contemporary Gallery, this will be the first major glass sculpture exhibit in Baltimore since 1996.

Fired Up!

May 18th through June 18th, 2022.

James Weldon Johnson Auditorium Gallery at Coppin State University

2500 W. North Avenue, Baltimore, Maryland 21216-3698

Weekly Gallery Hours: Thursday- Saturday from noon-6pm

For more information contact Linda Day-Clark of Coppin State University

lday-clark@coppin.edu

Posted in Baltimore, DMV, fired up, glass show, washington DC, washington glass school, 美国新艺术雕塑 | Tagged ,

New CAH Exhibition: Fragile Beauty (May 9, 2022 – July 1, 2022)

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With social injustice a common theme around the world, we are also currently witnessing the injustices committed against our natural environment. Like our ancestors, we sense nature’s vastness, yet we lack the same respect those indigenous peoples had for nature as a sentient being. We take the Earth’s vastness for granted. What we experience as nature pushing back is nature seeking balance.

Michael Janis: Transformation; cast glass, ceramic

With this exhibit, Fragile Beauty, 33 DC artists seek to bring a sense of balance to an array of environmental injustices. Their art and their vision advocate awareness, mindfulness, consciousness, and stewardship, offering pathways towards personal partnership with our planet. They tell their stories with painting, sculpture, prints, photography, and installations. They inform us of both the joyful and the sorrowful, the woeful and the hopeful. Their work will challenge, enlighten, and inform your sense of wonder for exploring the beauty, power, and magnificent mystery of our home planet. We thank these artists for their commitment to illuminating the importance of nurturing and protecting the fragile beauty of the place we all call home.

Fragile Beauty is the first juried art exhibition initiated by the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities. The new Juried Exhibition Grant provides support for DC artists to exhibit their creative vision to the residents of Washington, DC.

-Jarvis Grant


Featured artists: Tammy Barnes, Jeffrey Berg, Monica Jahan Bose, Elizabeth Casqueiro, Gloria Chapa, Michèle Colburn, Chris Combs, Shaughn Cooper with Kelsye Adams, Frank Hallam Day, Anna U Davis, R.A. Dean, Julee Dickerson-Thompson, Cheryl D. Edwards, David Allen Harris, Michael Iacovone, Michael Janis, Noel Kassewitz, Sally Kauffman, Barry D. Lindley, Patrick McDonough, Regina Miele, Steven Muñoz, Werllayne Nunes, Chelsea Ritter-Soronen, Lisa K. Rosenstein, Carly Rounds, Amanda Sauer, Alexandra Silverthorne, Ira Tattelman, Roderick Turner, Jessica van Brakle, Dawn Whitmore, Bahar Yürükoğlu.

Fragile Beauty
May 9 – July 1, 2022
Monday – Friday, 9:00 am – 6:00 pm ET

Opening Reception
Thu, May 12, 2022
5:00 PM – 7:00 PM EDT
Masks are required

Location:
DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities
Gallery
200 I Street, SE
Washington, DC 20003
Gallery Hours:
Monday – Friday
9:00 am – 6:00 pm

Posted in cast glass, ceramics/glass, DC, DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, DCCAH, environmental art, twenty first century sculpture, united states, فن الزجاج الجديد, 玻璃艺术新 | Tagged , ,

DC’s MLK Jr Library Features Washington Glass Studio on Public Art

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View of Green Community Gateway by Washington Glass Studio

The District of Columbia Public Library (DCPL) is a dynamic source of information, programs, books and services, among them is their Makers Program, that includes a Fabrication Lab. The Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library’s “Fab Lab”, complete with 3D printers, a laser cutter, soldering equipment, other machines is part of a new movement of public libraries embracing the “maker movement.” DCPL’s maker program is the largest of its kind in a public library, as they see the program as a force to bring together makers, artists, and creative people of all types and from all fields and backgrounds, encouraging cross-disciplinary cooperation. As part of the public engagement, the DCPL Makers & DIY Program is hosting a series of artists lectures at the newly refurbished MLK Memorial Library auditorium.

Image of Community workshop at Washington Glass School.

On Saturday, May 21, 2022, from 1:00pm – 2:00pm, Michael Janis, co-director of the Washington Glass School, will give a lecture on how the Washington Glass Studio created the “Green Community Gateway” with art made with the help of the community in Ward 7.

The “Green Community Gateway”, public art sculpture marks the symbolic entrance to the Kenilworth/Parkside section of DC’s Ward 7. Through a series of glass “quilting bees”, Washington Glass Studio brought together neighborhood residents, students of the high school, and the staff of the newly constructed Unity Healthcare facility to make glass art that would become an integral part of the arch.

This lecture program will take place in the auditorium at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, 901 G St. NW, Washington, DC 20001. Register at bit.ly/labsclasses. 

The renovated Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library in Washington, DC, originally designed by Mies van der Rohe, the landmark library was rejuvenated by Mecanoo and OTJ Architects.

Posted in 21st century glass, 21st century sculpture, community entrepreneurial model, contemporary art glass, contemporary craft, contemporary sculpture, cool glass, DC, erwin timmers, fab lab, kiln fused glass, kiln-formed glass, lecture, library, maker lab, martin luther king jr, michael janis, mike janis, mkl jr, Public Art, sculpture, twenty first century sculpture, washington glass school, Washington School of Glass, wgs, wgs projects, стекло искусство новое, 玻璃艺术, 美国玻璃艺术家 | Tagged