Back from BECON

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I always enjoy a trip to the Pacific Northwest and this one was particularly full of adventure. The driving focus was to attend the Bullseye Education Conference (BECON). Two years ago I attended the conference on architectural glass. This year’s conference, Filling the Void, was focused on glass casting. Nina “Sam” Hibler and I went with the intent of increasing our depth of knowledge and exposure to this area of particular personal interest to both of us. Once again Bullseye put together a well rounded conference with thought provoking speakers, some technical information and social events. In addition to the conference, this was an opportunity to spend time with friends and family from Portland to Seattle.

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I thoroughly enjoyed the time spent on a whirlwind tour of Portland; from the city's unique neighborhoods, to the natural beauties of the the Columbia River Gorge, followed by a fabulous late night meal with friends.

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Portland's neighborhoods are full of character and obviously cool

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Columbia River Gorge just before Sunset

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Papa Haydn - my advise skip dinner go straight for desert

this is not a reflection on the food it's a reflection on the desert

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After BECON was complete Sam and I headed North for a visit with Leslie Thiel walking the grounds of the Tacoma Museum of Glass and eating lunch on the docks. stopping in Tacoma to see the current exhibits is a habit of mine when coming to this part of the country. This time it afforded us the chance to see the work of some of the speakers we had just seen present at BECON a few days before.

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The fountains in the foreground are the work of Howard Ben Tre

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But most of all I enjoyed time with my favorite young artist (i.e. my 5 year old niece) taking walks in the woods, collaborating on drawings and visiting the Seattle Museum of Art (SAM). One of many exhibits presently at the SAM was A Bead Quiz which had examples and information about beads made from a myriad of materials, including glass. Personally, I enjoyed seeing the items in their permanent collection, of which some 100 pieces can be viewed online. This includes my favorite piece Some/One by Do-Ho Suh. I was struck silent (and this doesn't happen often) by the impact of seeing this amazing piece of sculpture. A large scale work made using the stainless steal of solders’ dog tags. Amazing both in it's construction and the message held in the hundreds of untold stories behind the dog tags used as components.

Now back home I am packing for my next trip, this time to the Pittsburgh Glass Center.

Flourish (flûr'ĭsh)

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As defined by the American Heritage Dictionary it is to thrive; to do or fair well; prosper; to make bold, sweeping movements; to wield, wave or exhibit dramatically. It is dramatic or stylish movements, as of waving or brandishing, an embellishment or ornamentation; to sign back and forth boldly.
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After two months of reading books and watching way to much bad television, I was finally given the all clear to go back to “work” with my right hand. Such good news I decided should be celebrated with a flourish, not just figuratively but literally. By that evening I was sitting in the classroom at Stamp Antonio Arts for a Calligraphic Flourishing workshop from my favorite calligraphy teacher Joan Schmitz. Having not picked up a tool of any sort for weeks it felt odd to grasp a holder and C2 nib. My normal apprehension of that first black mark on plan white paper was far outweighed by my desire to, at long last, do something. I had a good time letting go and my arm seemed to enjoy the broad and open movements.

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This energy carried over several days to Fiery Friday at Wired Designs Studio. Once again this is typically an environment were I am a bit out of my element. As the sole kiln formed glass craftsman in a room full of torch working pros I normally feel a bit intimidated, but not tonight. I arrived with a plan which involved making components for three separate projects. It wasn't long before I saw the similarities between the work I had been doing Tuesday night with pen and ink, and the design elements I was making in the torch. By the end of the night I must have busted out two full boxes full of ribbons and spirals. These will later end up in work like Family Tree or as the design element in a functional piece.

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There are times when I have made cognizant efforts to bring calligraphic techniques to my glass work. But I find more and more that it is the natural and often unconscious influence that I enjoy best.

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She did it again...

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It never seizes to amaze me how much there is to find in this flameworked glass bead. A whole world of sea life flow in the currents of this Deep Blue Tide Pool bead by Nina "Sam" Hibler.

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Perspectives, a juried exhibition sponsored by the International Society of Glass Beadmakers's (ISGB), encouraged artists to create a bead capturing their inspiration, innovation, and personal voice. This collection is on display June 5 to September 7 at the Radisson Hotel in Corning, New York, as part of the Glass Art Society (GAS) Conference.

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Congratulations Sam!

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Other recent ISGB shows which included Sam's work are Metamorphosis - the Life Cycle of a Bead and Out of the Box - Pushing the Boundaries of the Glass Bead.

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Continued Progress on the SACG Libary

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Just two boxes away from having a complete online record of the San Antonio Calligraphy Guild's (SACG) Library online at Libarything.com. As a life long book lover it has been a pleasure to have the opportunity to touch each of these books, flip through their pages, and when possible read them cover to cover. No wonder it has taken me so long to get them entered. But regardless, here are a few of my favorites from boxes 3 and 9.

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This limited edition signed accordion book by Betty L. Kjelson beautifully depicts the struggle faced in the painful journey to recovery made by the artist after an accident caused her severe burns in 1991. The book's illustrations come from gouache paintings created by Betty between 1992 and 1999. The vivid visual messages are accompanied by the poetry of Charles G. Ward Although what drew me back to this book repeatedly were the vibrant colors and bold strokes in the images, which tell a story by themselves. We can all relate, as there is not a one of us that has not experienced some physical, mental and/or emotional journey of recovery. The threads that weave through this book are part of the fabric that makes up our lives. The vertical belt gives you just a little taste as to what you will see inside. Opening this book you will see a small window into Betty's experience and quite likely a mirror to your own.

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The SACG book collection is just full of these small self published books from years ago that would likely disappear if not for collections such as this. If you know me even a little it can't be hard for you to see my interest here. Spirals permeate the world of Calligraphy. In the title of this text they are used in the flourishes and to form complete letters. I will admit this is a book I judged by it's cover. With my hands on so many books in a frenzy to get them entered online, I only skimmed this ones pages. I'll be back later to delve more deeply into it's history and knowledge.

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Now this is a book I truly enjoyed. Printed in 1986, Sixty Alphabets highlights 60 different calligraphy artists from all over the world. Each artist is given two pages, one to discuss the artist and the other displaying a sample of their work. As much as I enjoyed seeing the various hands displayed for each artists, I also found reading the various bios and seeing the artist's portraits, sometimes photographed and sometimes sketched, fascinating. After reading this book I found myself searching the Internet to see if I could find out what some of these artists are doing now.

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Gever's St.Studio Makes Local News

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Sitting in the shade among the completed and in progress work of sculptors, mosaic artist and painters at the Gevers Street Studio was the perfect venue for a San Antonio Visual Artists (SAVA) brainstorming session. And no better day to be at 718 South Gevers Street as they just received a fabulous write up on the front page of the Express News S.A. Life and Culturas section. It was intersting to sit amough both historic work of Betty Jean Alden and the contemporary work of local artists like Jeremiah Heye. Congratulations to the all the studio and associate artists at the Gevers Street Studio, including Christian Deworde Withers.

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just passing through...

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After two days of leading my students at Wired Designs tip toe through the room where visiting metal clay instructor Barbara Becker Simon was teaching, on our way to kilns or cold working equipment, my curiosity was peeked. Okay honestly, I was interested by the end of day one. Day two I was lingering in doorways to get a peek. So naturally I had to pick up a copy of her newly released book, Metal Clay Beads, to get a better idea as to what exactly they had been up to. I've just started flipping through it myself, but already I am impressed with the quality of the content and printing. I look forward to sitting down for a clay play day some time this summer and you can beat I'll have this book by my side.
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SAGAG May Meeting

Date: Thursday May 28, 2009
Time: 6:30PM
Location: La Posada del Rey

in the Lincoln Heights Shopping Center at Broadway and Basse Rd.
Program: Visiting Artist Roger Thomas

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Roger Thomas is a world renowned glass artist who is known to glass enthusiasts for his varied and unusual fusing techniques. He is visiting San Antonio as a guest instructor at Wired Designs Studio and has graciously excepted SAGAG's invitation to participate in our May meeting. Please join us in welcoming Roger back to the Alamo city. Hope to see you there.

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Spend a Bit Time with Nature

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Kilnformed Soda Lime Glass

Close up of a bowl 19" in diameter

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Changing leaves typically conjure thoughts of Fall. However, here in South Texas the Live and Red Oak trees loose there leaves in early Spring, making way for new foliage which they will hold through the following winter. There golden shades lend themselves to the landscape of drought influenced grasses which sprout in the rich soil left by the previous years leaves in the crevasses of limestone which is the Texas Hill Country. I collected these leaves on a cool evening walk in early March.

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With my thoughts on nature, I turn to a book I have read several times in the last four months Nature's Chaos. The photographs taken by Eliot Porter are absolutely amazing and alone are worth every penny I paid for the book and more. Paired with an almost melodic text written by James Gleick, whose words seem to frame the photographs, the book becomes an experience. Take it outside and read it under the branches of your favorite tree.

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Tree stump photographed while on a walk in the woods. The spot I plan to seat myself the next time I want to read Nature's Chaos.

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Recent Coastal Adventures

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In the last couple of months my husband David has found a couple of days to sneak away from his daily activities at My Place and take the three hour drive with our Doberman and I down to the Texas Gulf Coast. During these little adventures I snapped a couple of photos, read a couple of books and made some new glass discoveries; bits of which I thought I share with you.
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Cameras in tow I figured I'd brush up on the drive down by perusing a copy of The Digital Photography Handbook, which I had picked in the bargain bin of a "super" bookstore several months back. I was pleasantly surprised with how user friendly and informative it was. Granted my expectations had not been high. And yes, some of it is very basic. The book does not assume the reader knows anything. I just breezed pasted the content I was comfortable with and stopped in sections I found interesting. The content is formatted by topic every 2 to 4 pages, so it easy to skip sections or pick up were one has left off. This format also makes the book a good desktop reference. Inspired by my recent refresher I snapped a few shots (few hundred is more like it, thank God for digital) including the following.

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The dunes on North Padre Island

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Dober, with a keen eye on the seagulls up ahead

Isn't he handsome

- The end of a long day of play at the beach

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While looking for things to do in the Corpus Christie area I came across an exhibit at The Museum of South Texas titled Glasswear: Glass in Contemporary Jewlrey. I was disappointed to find the exhibit had closed just a few days prior, but the museum staff was nice enough to send me a copy of the catalog for a very modest price. The catalog turned out to be a lovely hardbound edition. With the ability to flip though its' pages at my leisure I didn't feel I missed too much . The exhibit travels next to New York City, and will be at The of Arts and Design from July 15 through September 20.

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The Art of Family

The opening for the current show at the SAVA gallery, at Rivercenter Mall, is tonight from 6-8pm.The theme of this exhibit is the “Art of Family” in honor of Mother's day. The show includes some really inspired and unique pieces representing various generations of family members. I was particularly surprised and honored when SAVA's President Shirlene dedicated the show my mother, Ana Vachier, who is participating with me posthumously.
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Family Tree, 2009

16 1/2 x 23 1/2" framed

torch-worked and kiln-formed soda lime glass

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The design element which is the foundation for this piece was created by my mother originally as a piece of filigree crochet. Although not visible in the photograph, behind the glass in the top of the piece are exerts from devotional journals in her own hand.

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SAVA Gallery - Flavors of Feista

The SAVA Gallery's current show Flavors of Fiesta received a little close up camera TV time April 1st, thanks to Great Day SA's Bridget Smith. San Antonio Visual Artists (SAVA) president Shirlene Harris was able to promoted the shows opening, the gallery and SAVA's long term goals. You can see this KENS5 segment of Great Day SA on their website. Flavors of Fiesta is scheduled to run at the SAVA Gallery through May 2.

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10 x 10 fused glass and enamel tile

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Evoke Gallery Spring Show

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A few of my pieces recently arrived in St. Paul, Minnesota for the Evoke Gallery's Spring Show. The pieces include functional items like the vibrant Sushi plates below, as well , display pieces like the ones I first posted as a response to an Inspire Me Thursday Challenge on Lace several weeks ago. This exhibit will be on display during St. Paul's Spring Art Crawl and through April 26.
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