Tis the Season!
All of us at the Washington Glass School & Studio Wish You and Family a Joyous Holiday Season! And a Happy Healthy New Year!
(L-R) Patricia De Poel Wilberg, Erwin Timmers, Christina Helowicz, Nancy Kronstadt, Kate Barfield, Tim Tate, April Shelford, Michael Janis, Trish Kent and John Henderson. Not pictured: Graciela Granek, Sean Robinson, Diane Cabe, Gabrielle Morris, Kyle Crosby, and Daphne Matyas.
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.
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.
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
2022 is the International Year of Glass (IYOG) AND the 60th Anniversary of American Studio Glass Movement. As part of the events celebrating glass, Howard Cohen of Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass has organized a spectacular exhibit of glass artwork during the Glass & Optical Materials Division (GOMD) conference in Baltimore at Coppin State University. This will be the first glass exhibit in Baltimore since 1996! The goals of the show are to showcase ways glass has matured into a sculptural medium, bring a diverse group of renown artists from the Baltimore/Washington region to the arts communities, and students in the area, and amplify artists voices including members of the BIPOC, Hispanic, LGBQT and immigrant communities. The exhibit will feature artwork by Dr Joyce Scott, Tim Tate, Soledad Salamé, Erwin Timmers, and Michael Janis. The exhibition is made possible through the support of the GOMD, the American Ceramic Society, Corning & Owens Corning for funding some of the exhibition costs and to fund the Baltimore scientific outreach to Baltimore City High schools.
The exhibit is scheduled to run from Mid-May through June 2022.
Join the Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass on Tuesday, March 15, at 2 p.m. Eastern time, when MacArthur Fellow Dr. Joyce J. Scott examines the extremes of human nature by conflating humor and horror, history and fantasy, as well as beauty and brutality to create artworks that not only mine the fabric of our complex collective history, but that reveal universal truths.
Best known for her use of the off-loom, free-form, glass bead weaving technique referred to as the peyote stitch, Scott merges beads, blown glass, and found objects with autobiographical, sociological, and political content to unapologetically confront themes of racism, sexism, violence, inequality, history, and oppression while simultaneously embracing splendor, spirituality, nature, and healing. For this episode of Fired Up!, expect the unexpected! Sometimes, her boundless energy and creativity will spill forth in delightful and playful ways, mocking cultural stereotypes.
Free – Open to the public. Click below link to register for AACG talk:
AACG Fired Up! Meeting Registration – Zoom
2022 is the International Year of Glass AND the 60th Anniversary of American Studio Glass Movement.
The United Nations has declared 2022 as the International Year of Glass (#IYOG2022) with programming occurring worldwide to celebrate all aspects of glass: studio and public art glass, architecture, history, technology, industry, and science. This exciting journey began in 2018. Support came from 1500 Universities and research centers, societies and associations, museums, artists, educators, manufacturers and companies in 78 countries on 5 continents.
The official kickoff will take place on February 10-11, 2022 in Geneva, Switzerland at the UN Palace of Nations. Among other scheduled activities, a National Day of Glass event is planned for April 5-7, 2022 in Washington, D.C. that will feature the North American glass industry, art community, government agencies and educational systems that rely on glass.
Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass (AACG) is a member of the IYOG2022 International Steering Committee and is tasked, along with The American Ceramic Society (ACerS), with leading promotion efforts around the art component of this global initiative. To accomplish this, AACG requests that U.S. museums, glass centers and schools, artists, regional glass collector’s groups, and other entities with a focus on or interest in contemporary glass assist by sharing information about exhibitions, panel discussions and IYOG2022 celebrations with admin@contempglass.org and https://ceramics.org/iyog. These programs will then be included on the AACG event calendar of art-related glass events throughout 2022 so all can enjoy.
“This is an extraordinary time to celebrate the material of glass in the arts, science, technology, communications, architecture, and sustainability of the environment on a global basis,” said Laurence Sibrack, board president of Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass. “It is our hope that artists and art institutions and organizations will join us in sharing IYOG2022 programming. Simultaneously, we will celebrate the 60th Anniversary of the American Studio Glass movement in 2022.”
Artist Lucy Lyon will present an online ‘zoom’ presentation that will be part of the Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass (AACG) Online Education in Art Series
AACG’s new Education Series, “FIRED UP”, features Lucy Lyon giving all a look inside her artist studio, process, and life on October 20 at 2pm EST. Working in cast glass, her work centers largely on the notion that despite the interaction we have in meeting up with each other, each of us is essentially alone. That brings up a bit of melancholy but it also makes the individual unique and therefore very important.
She started working in glass simply because it is a very seductive material and chose to focus on sculpting figures. Lucy says: ” What interests me most is trying to convey the intellectual and emotional state of the individuals in my pieces, relying on subtle gestures, a turn of the head or twist of the hips, to express the figure’s state of mind.”
We will explore these narratives with her, as we dive deeper into her inspiration and process.
All lovers of glass art are invited to attend!
Register today using the Zoom link below:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMlcu-qqTwvHNOKkSnBhEtmLl3mGNmuyMOV?fbclid=IwAR2sG5l7hPLZNB4Ggqldy1u25GxzKbxwx-QfjE9H8bozRxKrPhW_4NzO9sQ
Artists Erwin Timmers & Michael Janis will present an online ‘zoom’ presentation that will be part of the Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass (AACG) Online Education in Art Series – “Demystifying Public Art.”
Public art created by artists of the Washington Glass Studio both enrich and celebrate diverse communities. Successful projects include – The Monumental Doors for the Library of Congress, Laurel Library, the Washington DC Gateway Arch, and the West Palm Beach International Airport.
Michael Janis and Erwin Timmers will discuss how they navigate the complex processes from finding the projects to their ultimate creation and installation.
On Tuesday, September 15, at 2 p.m. Eastern time, AACG starts their Online Education Series called “FIRED UP” – click on the link to register for the free event:
The Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to further the development and appreciation of art made from glass.
The Alliance informs collectors, critics and curators by encouraging and supporting museum exhibitions, university glass departments and specialized teaching programs, regional collector groups, visits to private collections, and public seminars.
This Friday, Sept 4th at 3pm EST – Facebook group “21st Century Glass Conversations” page with the support of the Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass will be hosting an international zoom walk through of the new Glasstress edition, UNBREAKABLE: Women in Glass
Time: Sep 4, 2020 03:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Join free Zoom Meeting by clicking link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87395514631?pwd=dWhqTk5VRzFnVHJ2dU1TUWw4aXJ0UT09
This show truly marks the firm establishment of 21st century glass in so many ways. The curator of the show, Koen Vanmechelen will be showing us highlights of the show in the beautiful setting of an older factory in Murano, now the space of Berengo Studios and Glasstress.
The “Women In Glass ” show is the perfect counter-point to the “Venice and American Studio Glass” show at Le Stanza Del Vetro happening at the same time. One, revering the past and one showing a new present day possibility while predicting the future. Both together symbolize the full world of glass
This show include such well known US artists as Karen LaMonte, Joyce Scott and Judy Chicago, but also women artists from around the world working in glass. Some of the international artistist include Prune Nourry, Liliana Moro, Renate Bertlmann and Monica Bonvicini. New, perhaps, to American viewers, but hugely famous in their own countries and internationally.
This marks a rare moment in history, where because of Covid, we will get the chance to see the show from our own homes the day before it opens.
Please share!!
AACG Webinar with Michael Janis is on the YouTube!
The Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass (AACG) is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to further the development and appreciation of art made from glass.
The Alliance informs collectors, critics and curators by encouraging and supporting museum exhibitions, university glass departments and specialized teaching programs, regional collector groups, visits to private collections, and public seminars.
The AACG connects glass to the world via a number of multi-media platforms – including video webinars hosted on YouTube, most recently having WGS Co-Director Michael Janis explaining his sgraffito process and how the glass powder technique forms the basis for his work.
Artist Michael Janis’ process where creates detailed glass imagery with frit powder is the subject of the AACG online YouTube webinar.
Click HERE to jump to AACG webinar on glass powder drawings. Better yet – subscribe to the AACG YouTube page and see all the new videos!
Michael Janis gives the thumbs up to AACG’s YouTube series!
Goucher College in Towson, Maryland.
Howard Cohen – an Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass (AACG) Board member- presented a lecture series at Goucher College in Townson MD. The students in the class focused on the works of artist Dale Chihuly in the first lecture of the series.
Howard Cohen presents the history and works of artist Dale Chihuly at Goucher College.
The secont part of the Glass Class series focused on the works and history of artist Michael Janis.
Artist Michael Janis talks about his work and how the art world is changing.
Michael Janis’ background as a glass artist proved to be fascinating to the audience.
The class ended with the students seeking more information about glass and glass exhiitions. Many wanted to schedule a tour of the Washington Glass School and Studio in the fall – will post if theis comes to pass!