EXHIBITION JUROR: Beth Lipman. Ms Lipman is head of the glass department at the Worcester Center for Crafts in Worcester, MA. From 1997 – 2000 she served as the Education Director at Urban Glass, Brooklyn, NY . She received her BFA from Tyler School of Art, Temple University, in 1994, and in 2001 she was awarded a fellowship to study at Wheaton Village Creative Glass Center of America in Millville, NJ. Ms Lipman’s work can be viewed at www.hellergallery.com.

From the Guest Curator of Thinking in Glass

I am happy to be co-curating Thinking in Glass which is coming to the CAA gallery in October 2004. Glass is an exciting medium that has a rich history.

Glass is made from sand melted at a high temperature with a flux such as soda or lead oxide. At room temperature glass is not solid, it is in fact a super cooled liquid which will flow continuously throughout its life. This effect can be seen in old window where the panes distort over time becoming thicker at the bottom. The exact origins of glass are unknown but early artifacts point toward Mesopotamia circa 3000 BC. The earliest glass was used in place of gems for jewelry and it was also used to make beads, mosaic tile, and of course its most popular use was in making vessels or containers.

The methods of working with glass have changed little over thousands of years. What has changed is ideas about how to use glass. Today glass is a viable art and craft medium. My interest in glass is purely sculptural. Its properties are like no other material. It can be made into an object that is light as a feather or heavy as a cinder block; it can be transparent or opaque and it can be smooth as silk or rough and even dangerously sharp. Glass also has the ability to refract light.

The exhibition Thinking in Glass will explore the various properties of glass as well as different ways of expressing them. It is the curators’ hope that all forms of glass will be represented: glass blowing, kiln casting, stained glass, flame working, painting on glass, installation, video, as well as possibilities I haven’t yet thought of.

The exhibition runs from October 7 to November 7. There will also be a gallery talk following the opening on October 16, 4:00 – 5:00 pm, where I will discuss sandcasting and my co-curator Lilianna Glen will talk about flameworking.

Hillary Faccio