The Washington Glass School

London’s Victoria & Albert Museum collection of ceramics, glass, textiles, costumes, silver, ironwork, jewellery, furniture, medieval objects, sculpture, prints and printmaking, drawings and photographs are among the largest and most comprehensive in the world.

Big congrats to WGS alum Jeff Zimmer! Jeff is arguably one of the most successful artists from the Washington Glass School. Jeff was a teaching assistant here at the Glass School, and he went to the UK – to Edinburgh, obtaining a Masters degree in glass painting there in Scotland, where he currently lives. The Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A), London, is the world’s largest museum of decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 4.5 million objects. 

Jeff Zimmer ‘To See Ourselves As Others See Us’, enameled and sandblasted glass (mounted on LED), 27″w x 21″h x 7″d, 2012

The piece is called “To See Ourselves As Others See Us.”  It was made as half of a pair (the other titled “Ae Fareweel, Alas, Forever”) made for an exhibition titled “Cultural Exchange” organized by the Scottish Glass Society, curated by Mieke Groot and which took place at NorthLands Creative Glass during their conference last year, which is where Reino Liefkes, Senior Curator of Ceramics and Glass at the V&A saw the artwork.

Jeff describes his work in the exhibit catalog text :

As an immigrant, I am sensitive to political and social discussions of immigration.  Every country experiences the same anxieties.  People want to retain a perceived essence of place and culture, but rarely consider the effects on other cultures of their own desires to travel, emigrate and trade. The legacy of emigration is a large part of the Scottish psyche, and the ‘Highland Clearances’ are among the most well known and emotive aspects of Scottish history…

‘To See Ourselves As Others See Us,’ rescales the monumental homesick family from George W. Simpsons’s iconic panting ‘A Coronach In The Woods’ in a broader frame so the impact they have had on the lands that they colonized — often by squatting — can be glimpsed: felled trees, austere and uncompromising religion (the church on the outcrop referencing the notion of ‘the city on the hill’) and a reputation for drunken disorderliness. The title is a quote from Scottish national bard Robert Burns’ poem ‘To A Louse’.

Singer Amanda Palmer (of the Dreseden Dolls) and Jeff Zimmer in Edinburgh.

Washington Post Article by Michael O’Sullivan Thursday, May 26, 2011

As for other news, Jeff will be traveling to the beautiful Bavarian Forest to teach at Bild-Werk Frauenau.  Jeff is also preparing for his debut solo gallery exhibition at Clara Scremini Gallery in Paris in the spring.

In 2011, Jeff was one the artists participating in the Washington Glass School 10th Anniversary exhibit held at Longview Gallery. The Washington Post art critic wrote about the show, singling out Jeff’s work as artwork that “fires up” imagination. It is great to see friends do so well in their passion and career!

Congratulations Jeff Zimmer!