CLICK IT! Featured Artist: Jennifer Caldwell
Jennifer Caldwell
Jennifer Caldwell is internationally renowned for sculpting borosilicate glass using a torch. Humor, whimsy and imagination are a cathartic aspect of Jennifer’s studio practice that allows her to address more serious emotions from a place of playfulness. Objects from her experience become beautiful, yet un-functional, or are combined in a way to see the paradoxes through which Jennifer views the world.
Since 2012, Jennifer Caldwell and Jason Chakravarty have worked collaboratively, and formed JC Squared. Their works have been exhibited in museums including Corning Museum of Glass and Tacoma Museum of Glass, at SOFA Chicago.
Jason Chakravarty and Jennifer Caldwell
Washington Glass School blog catches up with Jennifer as her work is part of the WGS Contemporary online exhibit “CLICK-IT!” and the associated show “Artists for Racial Justice”.
Washington Glass School (WGS): Describe your artwork method/process.
Jennifer Caldwell: We use several processes to complete a single piece. For example, a porthole begins by taking a replica mold of a real object. A wax is then poured into the replica mold the wax is then cleaned up and altered to suite each piece. A custom mixed refractory investment is then poured over the wax, the wax is removed by using steamed leaving a hollow cavity. The investment mold is then brought up to 1500′ where then hot glass is melted into it. Following a extensive cooling process the investment mold is removed from the glass. Finally, the glass is cut, ground and polished. The life form portion of the piece is sculpted using specific tools and solid glass rods in a 3000′ flame with a oxygen propane torch.
WGS: Describe your work in the show and highlight aspects that the viewers should understand about the work.
Jennifer Caldwell: I really love “Catch and Release” the fence is Flameworked and the lock is cast. We are very fortunate to have our work/teaching take us all over the world. When we are somewhere new and we discover objects that form memories we put them in our work. The lock we found at the old city in Jerusalem. We had been exploring the city that day and stumbled into a shop after a few minutes of haggling it was ours. We brought it home made a silicone mold of it and now it becomes part of our vocabulary with the other molds we’ve taken. It holds a memory that’s unique to us but also can convey its own message with just being the object it is.
WGS: How have you handled the Covid lockdown?
Jennifer Caldwell: Honestly the technical part has not affected us as much as I thought it would. The hotshop we use has been shut down so we’ve had to think in different processes. However we get most our inspiration from everyday life and travels which have both slowed way down. I think we’ve had to reflect more internally.
WGS: What artwork/event has moved you and got you thinking about your own work?
Jennifer Caldwell: “Beyond the Streets” in Brooklyn last summer. It was a great exhibit that just showed how time and evolution and responses from what was happening in that moment showed told a collective story of the evolution of street art.
WGS: if you were not an artist – what would you be?
Jennifer Caldwell: I have no idea, but I feel it would need some sort of creative aspect to it.
WGS: Do you do a lot of planning in your work – or is there an element of chance while working?
Jennifer Caldwell: We start out with a plan. We need to because we are mixing so many processes however the piece will start to change and adapt to what happens along the way.
WGS: What is your rule of thumb in determining when a work is finished?
Jennifer Caldwell: When it starts to make me anxious and gets too busy…less is more!
Click here to jump to Jennifer’s work in CLICK-IT!
Click HERE to jump to Jennifer’s work in “Artists for Racial Justice” fundraiser.
Read about Jason Chakravarty – the other half of JC2 click HERE