“Patriotism is not a short and frenzied outburst of emotion but the tranquil and steady dedication of a lifetime. “
Adlai Stevenson
Category Archives: glass art
Celebrating Dr Martin Luther King Day
We pause to reflect on the meaning of Martin Luther King Jr Day. MLK day is one that celebrates the iconic leader and the legacy of a man who brought hope and healing to America. We commemorate Dr. King’s inspiring words, because his voice and his vision filled a great void in our nation, and answered our collective longing to become a country that truly lived by its noblest principles.
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” Martin Luther King, Jr.
Glass Art Magazine Features WGS Co-Director Michael Janis
Glass Art Magazine had profiled WGS artist Michael Janis recently for their podcast series “Talking Out Your Glass“. The Glass Art celebrates warm, cold and hot glass in multiplatforms – and had presented profiles in print magazines that are issued bi-monthy.
In the new January/February issue, some incredible articles – including a great read on Michael Janis’ works events, and fascinating profile on pioneering glass artist Ginny Ruffner’s distinguished career.
Have a listen to the Michael Janis podcast HERE - and click HERE to jump to Glass Art magazines site to get a subscription to the latest info on glass and glass education.
Washington Glass School Dances In the New Year!
Dance With Us
The rhythm of the cosmos
Is a waltz
In three steps
Dream
Create
Sustain
The crew at Washington Glass School wish all a joyful, bright, healthy, prosperous and happiest new year ahead! May this new year bring all the crazy colors and fun in life!
“Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow.” — Albert Einstein
Montgomery County Veterans Memorial by Washington Glass Studio
Montgomery County officials dedicated a new plaza and eternal flame in honor of the county’s war veterans on Monday, just before the next day’s observance of Veterans Day. County Executive Ike Leggett and Council president Craig Rice dedicated the plaza and its Fallen Heroes Memorial, which is part of the Judicial Center Annex construction project.
Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett (center left) with retired Navy Cmdr. Everrett Alvarez Jr. of Potomac, who was the longest-held prisoner of war in Vietnam, after the dedication of Memorial Plaza and unveiling of Washington Glass Studio’s Eternal Memorial Flame in Rockville, MD
The plaza is part of the Judicial Center Annex construction project that began in 2011 and involved an addition and renovation of the existing Judicial Center. The plaza and green spaces were redesigned to invite public use of the space.
During remarks at the dedication ceremony, County Council President Craig Rice, the son of a Vietnam veteran, noted the importance of having a peaceful place to visit to reflect and remember the sacrifices of our veterans.Among those participating was retired Navy Cmdr. Everrett Alvarez Jr. of Potomac, who was the longest-held prisoner of war in Vietnam.
Smithsonian American Art Museum Features Michael Janis
Michael Janis at the Smithsonian Museum. Photo by Miriam Rosenthal.
Washington Glass School sgraffito workshop. Photo by Miriam Rosenthal.
The James Renwick Alliance (JRA) is an independent national non-profit organization that celebrates the achievements of America’s craft artists and fosters scholarship, education and public appreciation of craft art. The JRA is the exclusive support group of the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the U.S. national showcase of contemporary American craft. Washington Glass School Co-Director Michael Janis was named “Distinguished Artist” by the JRA. The weekend’s events included a sgraffito glass workshop with Michael held at the Washington Glass School and Michael Janis presented at the Smithsonian Museum’s Turner Auditorium outlining his career, process, and artwork. The talk at the museum was broadcast live and the Smithsonian staff promised that it would be available online soon. 
The final event was the JRA hosted dinner on Sunday evening – it was a very busy exciting weekend for the Washington Glass School!
Congratulations to Michael – well done and well deserved!
Installing Glass Artwork Commission at Kaiser Permanente
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| Erwin Timmers mounts the colorful glass high above the building lobby. |
Erwin Timmers, Audrey Wilson and Reggie Williamson install the Washington Glass Studio glass artwork commissioned for Kaiser Permanente’s newly-expanded Largo Medical facility. Art consultant Maxine Manges of MKM Fine Art had approached Washington Glass Studio last year, looking to commision a colorful addition to the two-story medical center lobby. The resulting minimalist artwork is rich in jewel toned colors.
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| Erwin Timmers and Audrey Wilson install Kaiser Pemanente’s newest artwork. |
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| Audrey Wilson adjusts the location of the colored glass. Said Audrey “I like the way the analogous color scheme creates a harmonious balance throughout the building lobby”. |
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| Erwin and Audrey spent the day at the Largo facility installing the artwork commission. |
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| Erwin does the final adjustment of the glass components. |
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| The team step back to see the full installation. |
all photos by Reggie Williamson.
Report From SOFA Chicago
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Finally had a chance to catch my breath from a rushed viewing of the 18th Annual Sculpture Objects and Functional Art Fair (SOFA) held at Chicago’s Navy Pier!.
This year’s SOFA Chicago featured more than 60 international art galleries and dealers presenting museum-quality artworks and design, as well as lecture and tour series.
SOFA CHICAGO 2011 highlights included:
Maurine Littleton Gallery
The Washington, DC gallery showcased the newest works by WGS artists Michael Janis and Allegra Marquart alongside some of the “glass superstar legends” like Harvey Littleton, Therman Statom and Ginny Ruffner.
Works shown include Colin Reed, John Littleton, Kate Vogel, Harvey Littleton, Michael Janis, Therman Staom, Allegra Marquart, Ginny Ruffner and Drew Storm Graham.
Allegra Marquart’s new narrative sandcarved glass panels (L) and Drew Storm Graham’s wood assemblages (R).
John Littleton and Kate Vogel’s cast glass artwork.
Michael Janis’ painterly fused glass artwork
Jane Sauer Gallery
The Santa Fe gallery had a strong mix of artists in a variety of media.
Tim Tate’s delicious new works – cast glass sweets! Tim also featured framed hand-colored prints of his imagery.
Tim Tate’s video reliquaries are always a show favorite.
Hawk Gallery
The Cincinnati gallery had a stunning solo show of cast glass work by Bertil Vallien.
The Cincinnati gallery had a stunning solo show of cast glass work by Bertil Vallien.
A stunning cross-section of Bertil’s works. 
Bertil’s ladle cast glass encases beautiful imagery.
Bullseye Gallery
The Portland, OR based gallery featured the new directions kilnformed glass is heading.
The Portland, OR based gallery featured the new directions kilnformed glass is heading.
April Surgent’s cameo-etched work.
Silvia Levensen’s fun sculpture and fused glass panels.
Catherine Newell’s new fused glass panels.
Heller Gallery
Always a must-see, the New York gallery had some instant favorites.
Always a must-see, the New York gallery had some instant favorites.
Susan Taylor Glasgow’s “Communal Nest” -a large-scale assemblage consisting of glass twigs, real branches, a chair and a glass pillow. The work was built with help from the community and from artists around the world, all of whom contributed glass twigs to this “collective” nest. But despite these and other it-takes-a-village aspects — Susan’s work ultimately suggests a rather ironic view of home.
Susan Taylor Glasgow’s visions of domestic bliss.
Steffan Dam’s glass recalls scientific analysis.
Marc Petrovic’s roll-up process and stunning technique and aesthetic continues to amaze and impress. 
Beth Lipman’s table of fish.
Duane Reed Gallery
The St Louis gallery featured some glass beauties.
The St Louis gallery featured some glass beauties.
Kari Russell Pool’s beautiful flameworked sculptures.
Cassandra Blackmore’s abstract glass panels.
Some works that also caught our eye:
The annual show was a great time to see the best of media-based artwork and meet some of the artists I’ve only read about.
Many thanks to Betty Py for the photos – for more of her images of glass art shown at SOFA – CLICK HERE to jump to the Flickr site she set up for Washington Glass School.
Janis Miltenberger’s flamework sculpture at Thomas Riley Galleries.
Australia’s Beaver Gallery showed Jeremy Lepisto’s crate series.
Wexler Gallery showed how the simplicity of Sydney Cash’s work plays with the light.
Blue Rain showed the fun and beautiful work by Rik Allen. Here a glass spaceman floats amongst the glass.
The annual show was a great time to see the best of media-based artwork and meet some of the artists I’ve only read about.
Many thanks to Betty Py for the photos – for more of her images of glass art shown at SOFA – CLICK HERE to jump to the Flickr site she set up for Washington Glass School.
Michael Janis’ Solo Exhibition @ Fuller Craft Museum
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Fuller Craft Museum, Brockton, Massachusetts
Founded as a traditional fine arts museum and cultural center, over the past four decades the Fuller Craft Museum has transformed itself into a collection devoted entirely to crafts, one of only eight such museums in the US.
New England’s only museum of contemporary craft presents A Lighter Hand: The Glass Drawings of Michael Janis, on display Aug. 6 – Nov. 6, 2011.
One of the new works Michael has made for the exhibition is a site-specific sculpture that measures 8′-0″ and will be installed in floor to ceiling window of the exhibition space.
Michael Janis Unpredictable Factors
3′-0″W x 8′-0″H x 4″ fused glass, glass powder imagery, steel
Michael Janis Unpredictable Factors (detail)
3′-0″W x 8′-0″H x 4″ fused glass, glass powder imagery, steel
From the Fuller Craft Museum press release:
,,,”Janis’ work is the result of a laborious and challenging process. Similar to sgraffito, where a design is scratched through a colored ground revealing another color beneath; to produce the image Janis sifts black glass powder onto sheet glass, scraping away the powder to produce the detail. The image is suspended between layers of sheet glass and fired in a kiln to fuse the constituent pieces together. In this manner any number of images can be combined to produce complex juxtapositions. The result is a collage produced entirely in glass, built from a time-consuming process allowing for an extended contemplation of his subjects.
Building on the legacy of Surrealist artists of the early 20th century, in particular Giorgio de Chirico whose paintings juxtaposed disparate objects in moody and indistinct landscapes, Janis is able to construct a contemplative feeling from the layering of seemingly inanimate objects and ambiguous characters. His images in glass, particularly those examples in a tall and narrow format, also allude to the narrative quality of stained glass.
The juxtaposition of text, symbols, and figures seem to imply a hidden message or meaning, but like an ink blot or word association Janis leaves the viewer to provide their own conclusions.
Janis lives and works in Washington, DC, where he is Co-Director and an instructor at the Washington Glass School. He first began working with glass as an architect, evident in his dedication to sheet glass and the precision draftsmanship in his drawings. Fuller Craft will celebrate the opening of A Lighter Hand, with a public reception August 7 at 2 p.m. at the Museum. The reception is free for members and free with museum admission for all others.”
A lecture by Michael Janis precedes the public reception – click HERE for more information.
Building on the legacy of Surrealist artists of the early 20th century, in particular Giorgio de Chirico whose paintings juxtaposed disparate objects in moody and indistinct landscapes, Janis is able to construct a contemplative feeling from the layering of seemingly inanimate objects and ambiguous characters. His images in glass, particularly those examples in a tall and narrow format, also allude to the narrative quality of stained glass.
The juxtaposition of text, symbols, and figures seem to imply a hidden message or meaning, but like an ink blot or word association Janis leaves the viewer to provide their own conclusions.
Janis lives and works in Washington, DC, where he is Co-Director and an instructor at the Washington Glass School. He first began working with glass as an architect, evident in his dedication to sheet glass and the precision draftsmanship in his drawings. Fuller Craft will celebrate the opening of A Lighter Hand, with a public reception August 7 at 2 p.m. at the Museum. The reception is free for members and free with museum admission for all others.”
A lecture by Michael Janis precedes the public reception – click HERE for more information.
