Category Archives: narrative

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

“How We Take Care of Each Other” Artwork in the Time of Corona – Installation by Michael Janis

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We are social creatures. Every relationship has been built and held together by complicated nonverbal language, beginning with parent and child. It’s part of our social fabric. Individual, family, and interpersonal relationships have all changed as a result of the COVID-19 emergency. What is the characteristic of a pandemic? Emptiness. The unusual quiet in what was normally noisy, bustling neighborhood. Silence – where the silence isn’t merely the absence of noise. It’s judgement, longing and paranoia.The fear the we may be ourselves a transmitter of the virus as we seek the comfort of others.

How people are psychologically affected by and coping with the COVID-19 emergency is the basis of the installation of kiln cast glass by WGS artist Michael Janis. Over 20 individual glass panels make up the large wall-mounted work.

Janis’ signature “sgraffito” imagery – where he manipulates fine crushed glass powder  into highly detailed imagery and portraiture, fires the images into layers of colored glass is used to strong effect in this new work. Images of that convey the sense of how we are connected and yet are contained into separate worlds is the essence of the work. Working in the isolation of the lock downed studio, Janis says he will continue to add to the installation as the virus continues to work thru the world. “Working on artwork keeps me sane” says the artist.

Partial view of Michael Janis’ “How We Take Care Of Each Other” glass art installation. Kilnformed glass; glass powder imagery; varying dimensions; 2020.

Partial view of Michael Janis’ “How We Take Care Of Each Other” glass art installation. Kilnformed glass; glass powder imagery; varying dimensions; 2020.

 

Michael Janis covid theme artwork installation

Partial view of Michael Janis’ “How We Take Care Of Each Other” glass art installation. Larger panels approx. 18″ (45cm) dia.

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Detail of one of the fused glass panels in Michael Janis’ installation. Imagery made from glass powder in Janis’ signature sgraffito technique.

Michael Janis covid coronavirus art craft glass artwork 2020

Detail of Michael Janis’ glass art installation “How We Take Care Of Each Other”

Detail of works by Michael Janis.

Detail of works by Michael Janis. The translucent glass panels are mounted off the wall in varying dimensions, with light and shadow highlighting each panel edge.

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Detail of one of Michael Janis’ kilnformed works. COVID-19 cases are heavily concentrated in the African American population.

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The fabric of society is held together by even the smallest physical contact. Touch is as important a social condition as anything. It reduces stress. It makes people trust one another. It allows for cooperation. When you look at people in solitary confinement suffering from touch deprivation, you see that people lose a sense that someone’s got their back, that they’re part of a community and connected to others.

Posted in american craft, american glass, coronavirus, covid, covid-19, michael janis, mike janis, narrative, narrative glass

Norfolk’s OK SPARK Gallery Showcases Narrative Glass Art

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Norfolk, VA’s  Okay Spark Gallery will be hosting an exhibit of work by 5 artists from the Washington Glass School titled “DC Five – A Glass Narrative” – from February 5th through March 6th, 2016. 

Glass artists are moving out of their disciplinary confines and now draw from multiple media and disciplines.  The exhibitions will examine the art of storytelling, personal experiences and social commentary through sculptural works in glass.  Artists from DC’s Washington Glass School (Audrey Wilson, Erwin Timmers, Tim Tate, Sean Hennessey and Michael Janis) have a conceptually derived focus to their works. The artists’ interests and practices occupy areas between disciplines and media – dissolving and redrawing the boundaries along the way.

Audrey Wilson‘s kilncast pâte de verre sculptures and multi-media works are metaphors evoking our endless manipulation of environment, our need for control, and our longing for a meaningful union with nature and the other, in a supreme balance of power and delicacy.

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Audrey Wilson, “Preparation of a Primary Beam in a Pure State”, kilncast glass, found objects. Photo by Pete Duvall.

Erwin Timmers is one of the DC area’s leading ‘eco-artists’. Recycling, waste, the environment and how they relate to society are recurring themes in his work. His works are made from recycled glass. 

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Erwin Timmers, kilnformed recycled glass sculptures. Photo by Pete Duvall

Tim Tate merges traditional craft with contemporary digital media, often working with electronics and video components.

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Tim Tate, “Beware the Marquis”, cast poly-vitro, video. Photo by Pete Duvall.

Sean Hennessey regards glass as ideal for layering dimensional images and text in works that translate ideas concerning human experience, history and space.

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Sean Hennessey, “Drink Me”, kiln cast bas-relief glass, LED.

Michael Janis tells his stories using delicate crushed glass powder manipulated and fired into glass panels. 

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Michael Janis, “Waiting for my Shadow to Fall Back to Earth” Kiln formed glass panel with glass powder imagery. Photo by Pete Duvall.

This diverse and eclectic exhibition at OK SPARK Gallery opens February 5, 2015. Click HERE for gallery website.

DC Five – A Glass Narrative

February 5th through March 6th, 2016, Opening reception Friday Feb 5th, from 6-8PM .

OKAY_SPARK_LogoOkay Spark Gallery 

801 Boush St.
Norfolk, VA 23510
(757) 779-5784

Okay Spark is the only contemporary craft gallery in Norfolk, VA, and is located two blocks from The Chrysler Museum of Art. norfolk-va

Norfolk, Virginia is a pretty creative place. The city has a growing number of eclectic neighborhoods like the Norfolk Arts District and Ghent that are populated with art spaces and galleries like Okay Spark Gallery and the renowned Chrysler Museum of Art, a newly renovated, 220,000-square-foot attraction filled with European paintings, contemporary American art and a world-class glass art collection. 

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The DC5 doing their kiln mojo dance.

Posted in DC5, gallery, narrative, narrative glass, norfolk | Tagged , , ,

Spotlight on Susan Taylor Glasgow

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Susan Taylor Glasgow ‘You Are My Sunshine’.

On of the features of the blog is to showcase the work of favorite artists. One of the contemporary leaders of narrative glass is Susan Taylor Glasgow. Susan will be in the DC area soon, teaching a workshop at Weisser Studios.

Susan Talor Glasgow ‘Eve’s Penance’.

Susan Taylor Glasgow is represented by Heller Gallery, NY, and is exhibited throughout the United States. Her ‘Sewn Glass’ technique embraces the domestic act of sewing in an unexpected medium. Combining text with 1950’s imagery, Susan explores the “complex dichotomy of women’s roles within the household”. Each sewn glass sculpture starts out as a flat sheet of glass.

Susan says of her work “In my previous life I was a professional dressmaker and seamstress, so I have a comfortable understanding about how to take a flat sheet of material and give it form. Each panel is cut from a pattern designed to match the form I’ve made for it.”

To establish the three-dimensional shape and holes, each section of the glass is kiln-fired several times. The imagery is imbedded into the glass by sandblasting, and then by rubbing glass enamels into the blasted area to create the black and gray “photo”. The components are then re-fired to melt the enamel into the glass. Once cooled, the sections are finally sewn together. Depending on the complexity of the vessel or sculpture, the entire creative process may take two to four weeks to complete.

Susan Taylor Glasgow ‘Glamour Legs Model #121757 Set’.

Susan’s studio is in Missouri, in an old 1930’s house in downtown Columbia that she and her husband rescued from demolition. She is a 2002 recipient of Pilchuck Glass School emerging artists grant, and a Wheaton Arts fellow in fall of 2003, and most recently a resident artist at the Pittsburgh Glass Center. Susan’s work has earned numerous awards and she has work included in the permanent collection of the Carnegie Museum, Chrysler Museum, Museum of American Glass, and several others.

Click HERE to jump to Susan’s website.

Susan’s work will be part of a group show titled “Domesticity: How We Live” at Morgan Contemporary Glass Gallery in Pittsburgh, PA, opening in October.

Susan also has a solo show at Gallery One One titled ‘Refuge’ now on exhibit at Brazee Street Studios in Cincinatti, OH, with the closing reception on Oct 8th.

Ms. Glasgow is also a chair at the upcoming Pittsburgh Glass Center Benefit Auction to be held Oct. 15th in Pittsburgh, PA.

Posted in glass, narrative, sewn glass, studio glass, susan taylor glasgow

Call for Glass Artist Entries

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>A good friend of the school – the fabulous Susan Taylor Glasgow has advised us of an upcoming glass artwork competition – here are the details:

Call for Glass Artists
Short Stories: Narratives from the Kiln
June 20– August 1, 2009
Curated by Susan Taylor Glasgow for the Columbia Art League, Columbia, MO

Submission Rules:

Narrative kiln-formed glass
Under 16” in any dimension
There is an entry fee of $25. This is a non-refundable fee.
Can submit up to 3 artwork pieces for jurying. More than one image may be submitted per work, i.e., a close-up shot and a full-work shot.
Images for the jury must be submitted digitally, by email or on CD.
The images submitted must be of work available for the show. Each image should be labeled with yourname.titleofwork.jpg
Each submission should be accompanied by size and medium details.
Images should be a minimum of 300dpi and be sized at least 800×800 pixels.
CD submissions should be clearly labeled with the artist’s name.
CDs will not be returned.
Late entries will not be accepted.
Please note: Detailed instructions for shipping artworks will be sent to artists whose work is juried into the exhibition.

Awards :
Catalogue, purchase award
Dates :
March 15, 2009: Deadline for entries
Email address for entry: artleague@centurytel.net
online application: http://cal.missouri.org/exhibitioninfoform.html
more info: http://cal.missouri.org/glass09/index.html

update: insurance details

1. Standard insurance is provided by the Columbia Art League (CAL) while the objects are on CAL’s premises.

2. Artist shall provide insurance coverage for work in transit to CAL. CAL is not responsible for work until actually received and inspected for damage that may have occurred in shipping.

3. CAL shall provide insurance coverage during transit when returning work to Artist. Work shall be insured at wholesale value provided by Artist.

4. CAL is only responsible for insurance on items shipped to the return address designated by Artist in the United States. Forwarding shipment or international shipment for whatever reason is not covered by CAL’s insurance.

5. CAL is not responsible for the return packing, shipping or value of artwork which requires special needs unless prior arrangements have been made between Artist and CAL, noted in writing and signed by both parties. Special needs for purposes of this paragraph shall include, but will not be limited to, oversize objects which cannot be shipped via United Parcel Service or the United States Post Office, objects which must be shipped overnight or 2nd Day through United Parcel Service, weights in excess of 100 pounds and/or perish ability in some manner of the artwork.

Posted in columbia art league, competition, glass, narrative, susan taylor glasgow