Category Archives: national glass centre

International Glass & Clay 2013 Opens Friday

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Using an art exhibition as a bridge between countries, Artomatic, the DCCAH, the City of Sunderland, England and the UK National Glass Center have collaborated to bring together the Sister Cities of Sunderland, England and Washington, DC in a show that celebrates the medias of glass and clay, as well as celebrating the relationships between the two cities.


We are pleased to invite you to attend the opening reception of the International Glass and Clay 2013, on Friday evening, March 1 from 5:30-8pm, hosted at the Pepco Edison Place Gallery in downtown Washington, D.C. 


Visit our special website for more information about the exhibition http://glassandclay.org/ – There are planned events during the show, including demos, roundtable discussions, wine tastings and more!

Pepco Edison Place Gallery

702 Eighth Street (between G and H streets)

Washington, DC 20068

Posted in artomatic, cohesion glass network, creative cohesion, dc sister city, flux studios, glass and clay, national glass centre, pepco edison place gallery, sunderland, university of sunderland

UK Hosts 2nd International Symposium of Architectural Glass

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The UK International Institute of Research in Glass (IIRG) presents the 2nd International Symposium in Architectural Glass, focusing on ‘Working with light as a means of interaction between space and the mind’.

The emphasis of this event is on how flat glass is used three dimensionally in space and as a creative means of expression. This will explore both the theoretical and practical aspects of this process: idea exploration; design development; use of new technologies; the possibilities of technical restrictions; and the multi-disciplinary approach prevalent in many projects.

The Symposium will run on Thurs/Friday, May 17 &18, 2012 at the National Glass Centre in Sunderland, England. The event will take the form of traditional lectures, panel discussions, workshops demonstrations and informal networking opportunities. Speakers include:

Marian Karel

Dana Zamecnikova

Judith Schaechter

Algirdas Dovydenas

Daan Roosegaarde

Rodney Bender

Tim Macfarlane

Alexander Beleschenko

Early bird fees, if you book and pay before the 1 May:

One day £55, Two days £90

You can book your place through the University online shop, just search Conference/Events International Glass Symposium.

http://onlinestore.sunderland.ac.uk

University of Sunderland, National Glass Centre

Liberty Way

Sunderland, UK, SR6 0GL

Posted in architectural application glass, judith schaechter, national glass centre, symposium, uk, university of sunderland

Washington, DC Fulbright Scholars Connect with Ancestral Home of President George Washington

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>As our time in the UK continued, Fellow Fulbright Scholar Tim Tate and I were invited to speak with students from St. Anthony’s – a technical specialist college in Sunderland.


Tim Tate & Michael Janis talk about the future of the arts to students at St Anthony’s in Sunderland, England.

After meeting with the students, Sunderland City Council’s Catherine Auld then took the DC crew on a quick jaunt to a couple of scenic spots that are around the city of Sunderland. First stop, the Town Hall and Indoor Market of Durham.

Tim Tate and Kay Janis at the Durham Town Hall.

Durham Town Hall and Market place were on the site since the Middle Ages. The current building dates from 1800’s.


Kay Janis seeks out notions from the indoor markets.

Nearby is the famed Durham Cathedral. The magnificent Romanesque structure dates from the 10th century, and boasts fine stained glass panels.


Durham Cathedral (and denim jeans artwork installation).

Catherine Auld, Kay Janis and Tim Tate at the Cathedral’s famed “Sanctuary Knocker”.

“Daily Bread” stained glass in Durham Cathedral by Mark Angus, 1984.

More importantly, the Cathedral, cloisters and grounds were used as some of the sets in the Harry Potter movie series.




Professor Tate as Harry Potter and the Fulbright Scholar, 2012

Afterwards, Catherine took Kay, Tim and I to see the ancestral home of George Washington in the county now known as Tyne and Wear. Although the hall was closed, Catherine worked her magic and arranged for a private tour of the building.


Washington Old Hall

George Washington’s ancestors were natives of this area as far back as the 12th century, and members of his family continued to live there for almost five hundred years.

The Saxon Origin of the Washington Family Name: This was, in fact, where the purely Saxon name of Washington derived. Among the first to bear it were the descendants of William de Hartburn near Stockton [-on-Tees], who came to live in the manor now known as Washington Old Hall as long before as 1183.

At that time, people in England and elsewhere had no surnames as we know them today, and were most often identified by the locations in which they lived. “Washington” was one of them. The name originally meant “the estate of the Hwaes family.’ “Hwaes” in its turn was the name of a Saxon chief, while “ynga” meant “family” and “ton” – a typically Saxon suffix – stood for “estate.” These three terms were linked and given a tinge of French since, like many prominent families in England, the new Washingtons sought to identify themselves with the French Plantagenet kings who succeeded the Normans and ruled England after 1154. The result was the original form of Washington – “de Wessyngton”.

Washington, DC Fulbright Scholars Tim Tate and Michael Janis pay homage to the Washington Old Hall in Durham County, UK.

Washington Old Hall was pulled down and rebuilt by the Bishop of Durham, who purchased the property from William de Wessyngton in 1613.Sadly, though, some three centuries later, it had become very dilapidated. The Hall was condemned as unfit for human habitation, and destined for demolition. It was fortunately saved from demolition by a committee specially formed to preserve it, and after thoroughgoing restoration work, the Hall was officially opened in 1955 by the then American ambassador, Winthrop W. Aldrich. Two years later, the Hall was taken over by the National Trust, an organization dedicated to preserving places of historical interest or natural beauty.


Garth Clark lecture on Ai Weiwei ceramics

The next morning, Garth Clark, noted art historian and critic – who the Washington Glass School has posted about his thoughts on the Death of Craft previously – gave a fascinating and provocative lecture about the work of Chinese bad-boy ceramic artist Ai Weiwei.

Coming Next: Workshops at University of Sunderland.

Click here to jump to first part of the Fulbright Journey blog posts.

Posted in ancestral home, cathedral, durham, fulbright scholar, fulbright specialist, harry potter, michael janis, national glass centre, Tim Tate

London’s Calling (Tim Tate & Michael Janis)

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Bon Voyage Guys!

Professors Janis and Tate are on the Road to England. As mentioned in earlier posts, the Fulbright Scholars will be at the UK’s National Glass Centre at the University of Sunderland, in the northeast of England. The boys will also be exhibiting their artwork at London’s Affordable Art Fair, this March 15-18. They have promised to post updates of their adventures across the pond. I am sure we can expect photos of their sights – perhaps a glimpse of Tate – at the Tate!

For those of you in the land of John Bull, here are the dates and location of the show in London’s Battersea area:
London Affordable Art Fair
Cohesion Glass Network Booth
Battersea Park
London
SW11 4NJ
15 -18 March 2012

Posted in fulbright scholar, michael janis, national glass centre, Tim Tate, university of sunderland

Tim Tate & Michael Janis – Fulbright Recipients

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Professor Janis

This March, WGS Professors Janis and Tate will be heading over the pond to Ye Olde England as Fulbright Scholars – heading to University Of Sunderland and the The Institute for International Research in Glass (IIRG).

Professor Tate

Sponsored by the US Department of State, the Fulbright Program is a program of competitive, merit-based grants for international educational exchange for students, scholars, professionals, scientists and artists, founded by US Senator J. William Fulbright. The Fulbright Program is one of the most prestigious awards programs worldwide, operating in over 155 countries. Forty-three Fulbright alumni have won Nobel Prizes, including two in 2010.

IIRG‘s Centre

The University of Sunderland has the largest glass and ceramics department in Europe. The Glass & Ceramic department is housed in the National Glass Centre’s landmark £17million building, adjacent to St.Peter’s Campus.

The UK National Glass Centre has interesting glass shop procedures. Above is photo by Anna Liukas from Sunderland’s 2010 calendar featuring shots of students at work in the hot shop.
Above, a flamework studio student pictured hard at work. photo: Anna Liukas
Apparently, the North East of England is much hotter than we were led to believe. Traveling light should be the bywords for our two intrepid scholars.

Tim and Michael will be teaching special courses at the University starting in the month of March, 2012. We are looking forward to their stories and blog photo updates of their escapades!

Posted in fellowship, fulbright, fullbright scholar, IIRG, michael janis, national glass centre, sunderland, Tim Tate, university of sunderland

DC & UK Glass School Connection

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UK’s National Glass Centre at the University of Sunderland

Representatives from one of the world’s leading glass art education centers – the UK’s University of Sunderland and National Glass Centre met this week with the directors of the Washington Glass School to discuss collaborative educational opportunities between the two glass schools.
Residencies both here at the Washington Glass School and at the University of Sunderland, exhibitions and how to enable a free exchange of ideas, students and staff are amongst the topics to be worked through.
It would be very exciting to have many of the UK glass artists we first met at the Artomatic-sponsored “Glass 3” collaborative exhibit between 3 world glass centers held in 2008, and saw more of during the critically acclaimed Artomatic 2009, come and teach their techniques and tricks.

We will post more information on this topic as this collaboration develops.

Posted in national glass center, national glass centre, sunderland, university of sunderland, washington glass school