The work was piled high on my desk yesterday and my only student cancelled... So, I thought it was the PERFECT opportunity for a spontaneous visit to one of my favorite places, Wheaton Arts.
To my delight I stumbled upon a real treat. The Paul Stankard & Stankard Studio Artists Exhibition was in the gallery, and I HAD MY NIKKON CAMERA & I Pod.
Does it get any better than this?
If a picture indeed says a thousand words, these stunning works of art speak volumes. They are remarkably detailed and layered with depth that it is impossible to truly appreciate it through printed material or photographs. It must be seen in person to appreciate all that goes into their creation. Just look at the Murrine portrait chips within the seed pods. It is a master piece on it's own.
I would have given my right arm to have the opportunity to photograph these works in early morning sunlight without the plastic case separating me from obtaining the perfect photograph.
Bringing the Macro Lens would have also been a good idea.
The gallery & museum feature some of the finest paperweight artists. You can see work from the Kontes, Gordon Smith, Chris Buzzini, Debbie Tarsitano, Bob & Ray Banford just to mention a few.
Josh Simpson's work is also within the gallery store. I could have kicked myself for missing the Corning Josh Simpson Megaplanet / Worlds Within Exhibition.
His work is even more detailed if you can imagine! It is layers upon layers of detail birthed of fire. He is the poster boy of what a true glass artist is. If you are not familiar with his work go to www.megaplanet.com and buy the video documentary then pick up one of his inhabited planets, they are affordable at $250.00 each and they will not dissapoint. Photos just do not do the depth in art glass any justice.
OK, back on track here...
Now this photo is a bit deceptive. The work is around a 12-14 inch perfect sphere. It has to weight around 40 pounds or so I imagine. Even though that might not sound like much to YOU, I would like to remind that it weights a great deal more on the end of a steel punty. I am uncertain on if finished halves were assembled during cold working or if the whole piece went into a glory hole for block shaping/reheating after encapsulated pieces were arranged. To be perfectly honest, I am not qualified to answer my own question, but I am on a mission to understand paperweight creation techniques. I have the shott clear and encasement cuff/plate. I think it is time to start with my first formal lesson and book a Loren Stump class as an excellent first step. My luck, I will be mezmerized by murrine and camp out on that technique for a few years instead. Hmmm... that might not be such a bad thing! I keep putting classes off due to requests to teach in my own facility, but it is time to slow things down a bit.
(If your a glass blower or vacuum encasement artist reading this, call me I would like to attend a lecture or pay for studio observation time. ~ Seriously.)
That is the last eye candy shot for now, but I will return with dozens of Wheaton Arts photos of the glassblowers! ~ Starleen Remember, Students that wish to go on a trip to Wheatons may accompany me monthly free of charge as a Studio benefit. I am both your tour guide and wheel man. The only thing it will cost you is a smile. Keep their fires burning by visiting them often and purchasing a piece of art to treasure. Volunteers work hard to keep the glass molten in historic South Jersey! http://www.wheatonvillage.org
For more information on Starleen or the hot glass studio, visit www.StarleensStudio.com , We would love to hear your feedback!
History of glass molds
