Rania Hassan | Washington Glass Studio

Rania Hassan "Threads" Opens at Montpelier Arts Center

Posted on April 3, 2013 by Betty Py |

Mixed Media artist – Rania Hassan has a solo show of her work April 5 – May 27, 2013 at the Montpelier Arts Center (Main Gallery).

Rania combines knitting and painting to weave sculptural stories of connections to friends, family, and the idea of home. ‘Threads’ is an exploration of connecting knitting and painting with fiber and wood. Rania says of her compelling mixed media work: “I am fascinated by the connections we find in our everyday experiences. How do we think of our place in this world? How do we fit in it? My work is about levels of connectedness. I paint, draw, and knit to represent these moments. We are all connected somehow. This series started because of my fascination with knitting, love for painting, and intrigue in the community I’ve found online with knitters from around the world. I think about how it links me to my mother, her mother, and all the generations of women who came before them.”

Rania Hassan: Threads
April 5- May 27, 2013
Opening Reception Sunday, April 7th, from 2-4 pm
Montpelier Arts Center
9652 Muirkirk Road, Laurel, MD 20708

Posted in knitting and paint, Montpelier Arts Center, Rania Hassan

Breaking Headline News… Washington Glass School in Washington Post

Posted on December 22, 2012 by Michael Janis |

>The Friday Washington Post newspaper had a couple of articles that featured Washington Glass School instructors – Mark Jenkins gives a review of Rockville’s VisArts 25th anniversary exhibit “Review, Review” that featured two of Professor Tim Tate’s glass artwork sculptures.

The Dec 21st Washington Post uses Tim Tate’s “Lexicon Primer” (inset and detail of glass) as the teaser for the VisArts exhibit review.

The Weekend Section also featured Washington Glass Artists – Sean Hennessey and his lovely wife, Rania Hassan.

Rania & Sean – together they are one of DC’s power arts couples

Sean and Rania were judges of the Washington Posts’ Holiday Wrapping paper contest for kids, and the winning design, by Carolin Vorona was featured in the section, along with a pull-out printing of the paper.
From the Post article about the selection of the Carolin’s work:“Each of the entries had something I liked,” Hennessey says. “Some had a great use of patterns, others had a sophisticated use of color and many had a fun sense of imagination. The glittery snowmen had a balanced sense of all of the above.”

10 yr old Carolin Vorona’s snowman entry. The judges particularly liked the Western snowman, complete with mustache, hat and horseshoe, but the sensitive and insightful use of the glitter medium cinched the win.

Click Here to jump to the article and photo gallery of the honorable mentions.

Posted in Rania Hassan, sean hennessey, Tim Tate, VisArts, washington post

Prince George’s County Buys Artomatic Artwork

Posted on June 4, 2012 by Chip Montague |

This past Saturday at Artomatic, Prince George’s County announced their acquisitions of artwork on exhibit by Prince George’s County artists. The Department of Parks & Recreation said that the purchase of artwork comes as “recognition of our artists’ role in the regional art community and is an attempt to highlight, showcase and promote their accomplishments as well as demonstrate the long-term positive impact of the arts within our communities”.

Ronnie Gathers, Director, Prince Georges County Department of Parks and Recreation announces the artwork selection.

Below lists the 11 works purchased – the artists below deserve well-earned congratulations! Prince George’s County deserves a huge thank you! from the DMV arts community for its support.

2012 Prince George’s County Artomatic Purchases

Ellen Cornett “No Puppets” Pastel on paper

Matt Deal “Machinery” Blown glass

Eric Eldritch “Elementals I” Acrylic on sandpaper

Eric Eldritch “Elementals II” Acrylic on sandpaper

Rania Hassan 6 Panels from “Knit Dress” Acrylic & Fiber on Canvas

Sean Hennessey “Hopes and Dreams” Glass, Concrete, Paint, Steel, LED

Jessica Murray “Untitled” Mixed media on paper

Bert Pasquale “Final March” Photograph

Bert Pasquale “Final Flight” Photograph

Ishmail Reaves “Microphone” Acrylic on canvas

Ronnie Spiewak “Landfall” Collage

Washington Glass Studio “Fractal Panel” Glass, paint, light

Curtis G. Woody “Just Beyond the Sunset” Mixed media collage

Posted in "washington glass studio", Prince George's County, Rania Hassan, sean hennessey, walter g stiles

Sean Hennessey & Rania Hassan : Crafty Bastards

Posted on September 27, 2011 by Michael Janis |

>Glass/mixed media artist Sean Hennessey and his wife, artist Rania Hassan are both part of this Saturday’s craft fair ” Crafty Bastards”. Saturday, October 1, 2011 from 10am – 5pm located on 18th Street NW, in the heart of Adams Morgan section of Washington, DC. Sean’s cast glass and mixed media panels were some the most popular works on exhibit at the WGS 10th Anniversary show at LongView Gallery this summer. In 2009, Rania’s mixed media/textile work was awarded the James Renwick Alliance‘s “Craft Award of Distinction”. Check out Sean’s new cast glass panels and Rania’s newest artworks – awesome!

Detail of Looking for a Hero
Glass, Steel
by Sean Hennessey

Crafty Bastards Arts & Crafts Fair is an exhibition and sale of handmade alternative arts and crafts from independent artists presented by the Washington City Paper. The fair is all-day, outdoors, free to attend, and will offer goods for sale, food, entertainment, prizes, and more!

Booths #34 and #35
Crafty Bastards
Saturday October 1st
2151 18th Street NW, DC in the heart of Adams Morgan
10AM- 5PM

Posted in adams morgan, Crafty Bastards, Rania Hassan, sean hennessey

What Compels An Artist To Buy Art

Posted on December 27, 2010 by Michael Janis |

>DC based artist Sean Hennessy – writes in his blog “Paint and Plaster“ insights on how he and his wife – artist Rania Hassan – actively collect artwork and how they seek out work from local artists.

I wanted to share something very personal to me. our art collection. not pictures or anything, but the artists that we collect. My wife Rania and I have, over the last few years, been trying to collect works of DC area artists. We’re pretty committed to promoting and supporting local art and we have a lot of great friends that happen to be great artists. Place and community and important to us. We also want to shape our collection into something very personal and a narrative of sorts or our life, people and things that we want to be close to. Our collection is one venue and outlet for our creativity. I’ve talked to a number of people recently that want to collect DC art but were uncertain where to begin. I hope this helps those people… as well as just serving as a list for me to remind myself to buy art… and yes, its 100% subjective…

It is great that these artists choose to support the local art scene. I encourage everyone to go to local shows, galleries and artfairs – there are many ways to support the artistic life of your community.

Click HERE to jump to Sean’s list of artists and what compels him to purchase the works.

Posted in collecting artwork, Rania Hassan, sean hennessey

Hennessey and Hassan Opening @ NIH

Posted on May 7, 2010 by Michael Janis |

Sean Hennessey / Rania Hassan

Washington Glass School Artists Sean Hennessey and Rania Hassan both have their artwork on exhibit at the National Institutes of Health [NIH] in Bethesda, Maryland. Their evocative & tactile artwork will be on display through July 2 in the Clinical Research Center Galleries in the Mark O. Hatfield NIH Clinical Center, Building 10.

National Institutes of Health [NIH]

Clinical Research Center Galleries

Mark O. Hatfield Clinical Research Center, Building 10

May 7–July 2, 2010

9000 Rockville Pike Bethesda, Maryland 20814

Click here for map

Click here for visitor information *

*NIH is accessible 24 hours a day, everyday, but it is a secure facility, and as such, there are some access procedures visitors will go through.

Weekends and evenings are the best time to visit.

On the weekends, visitors need to use the delivery entrance on Rockville Pike, and on weekdays, the visitors entrance.

Posted in Lillian Fitzgerald, National Institutes of Health, NIH, Rania Hassan, sean hennessey

Social Networking Seminar

Posted on April 12, 2010 by Chip Montague |

Nora, The Piano Cat
click on image to jump to cat-certo video

Special Seminar: Social Networking and Marketing Your Art

This special seminar will be held during CraftWeek DC and in cooperation with the James Renwick Alliance’s Spring Craft Weekend. Come and explore with us the possibilities for advancing your artwork using today’s popular social networks. Get shows, sell your work, approach galleries, blogs, newspapers…. so many forms for the new face of art to investigate.

Find out how Tim Tate was able to turn a Facebook posting of a cat playing a piano into a show at New York’s Museum of Arts and Design – that alone is reason enough to participate in the seminar!

The seminar speakers are some of DC’s art stars that are at the forefront in the use of the internet and social media:

Rania Hassan studied art in college in Lebanon and moved to Washington to work for the White House. More recently, Rania has been getting attention for her alt-craft “knit paintings,” and last year she received an award from the James Renwick Alliance, which is affiliated with the Smithsonian’s Renwick Gallery. Rania has kept her day job working for the government but finds herself devoting every spare moment to her craft. She actively sells her artwork with Etsy, and Crafty Bastards.

Click HERE to jump to Washington Post article about Rania.

F.Lennox Campello studied art at the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington. In 1996 he was the co-founder of the Fraser Gallery, a leading independently owned fine arts gallery in Washington, DC and he has been the recipient of many art awards as well as having exhibited widely in the United States, Latin America and Europe. He is also often heard on National Public Radio (in the USA) and the Voice of America discussing the visual arts from the Greater Washington, DC region. Lenny is an award-winning artist, and his art news blog; DC Art News is one of the highest ranked visual arts blogs in the Blogsphere. Lenny is well known for his “Boot Camp for Artists” seminars on how to survive as an artist.

Click HERE to see his website.

Tim Tate is the Co-founder and Co-Director of the Washington Glass School. He is a sculptor who has been working in glass, steel, concrete and ceramic since 1989. He oversaw a glass casting production studio in New Orleans for three years. Tate’s artwork has been shown in many galleries and museums including the permanent collections of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Mint Museum, the University of Richmond Art Museum and the University of Virginia Art Museum. Tim was the recipient of the 2009 Virginia A Groot Foundation Grant for his work in sculpture.

Click HERE to see his website.

Seminar 222 – Special Seminar: Social Networking and Marketing Your Art

Instructor	Rania Hassan/ Tim Tate and F Lennox Campello
Date	Saturday April 24
Time	1 pm – 3pm
Tuition	$20

Click HERE to jump to the Washington Glass School class list & use PayPal form at top of webpage.

Posted in art, f lennox campello, Lenny Campello, marketing, Rania Hassan, social networking, Tim Tate

Washington Post features Crafty Bastards

Posted on October 2, 2009 by Michael Janis |

The most recent Washington Post Weekend section had an in-depth feature about the Crafty Bastards alternative-craft fair.
The Washington Glass School lays claim to two of the featured artists – Kristina Bilonick and Rania Hassan!
The article by Lavanya Ramanathan covers the Crafty Bastards fair in general, and has a separate focused article on each of the highlighted artists.

Rania Hassan photo by Dayna Smith for the Washington Post

Click HERE to read about Rania Hassan and her woven artwork. Rania often shows her artwork at the Washington Glass School open house events, along with her husband, glass artist Sean Hennessey.

Kristina Bilonick photo by Dayna Smith for the Washington Post

Click HERE to read about Kristina Bilonick’s prints and clothing. Kristina has been with the Washington Glass School since its beginning, as both artist and instructor. Her work as Program Director (more than a ‘party planner’ as the Post describes her) for the arts organization Washington Project for the Arts has really put DC area artists into the spotlight – it is nice to see some well-deserved attention come back on her!

Click HERE to read the article about DC’s alt-craft scene.

Posted in Crafty Bastards, Kristina Bilonick, Rania Hassan