Glass Art Association of Canada

Igniting Embers

Members’ Exhibition 2024

The Glass Art Association of Canada is pleased to present our spring members’ exhibition Igniting Embers. This members’ exhibition focuses on emerging, mid-career and established artists from across Canada who employ glass as their primary medium. See how these artists approached the concept!

Thank you for visiting!

Please note this is an online exhibition hosted by GAAC. If you have any questions or inquiries about a specific piece, please contact the artist directly, you can also check out their GAAC artists profile for more work and contact info.

Germ

Year:
2024
Dimensions:
12" x 12"
Materials:
Fused glass: sheet, powder, frit
Description:
Inspired equally by quilting and biology, Germ seeks to emulate a pattern evocative of microscopic organisms and structures.

Artist

Coley Coley

Hi there! My name is Coley, and I am continually curious. I returned to school to study Glass at Sheridan College in 2021 and was immediately captured by the endless possibilities of this unique material. I am a multidisciplinary artist and performer constantly creating in Tkaronto. My work is experimental and process-oriented, and examines perceived dichotomies (the space between), idiosyncrasies, and life on the periphery. I create sculptures and installations blending glass techniques from fusing, hot casting, and glassblowing with other media.

Pastel Polka Dot Vase

Year:
2024
Dimensions:
29cm x 10cm x 10cm
Materials:
Blown Glass
Description:
Recently, I have been experimenting with layering up opaque colours in the hot shop, riffing off of the flame working technique of dot-stacking. As the vessel is blown out, the dots distort and stretch, illustrating the movement of the material when it is hot. I find it intriguing the way this psychedelic effect is juxtaposed by the symmetry of the vessel's form. I combine colours based on their contrast or harmony, and in this case the pastel tones on the white are subtle but complimentary.

Artist

Lindsey Adelman Lindsey Adelman

Lindsey Claire Adelman is an emerging glass and photo artist from Barrie, Ontario. She attended Haliburton School of Art and Design, studying Visual & Creative Arts, Photo Arts, and Glassblowing. Her desire to continue glassworking brought her to Oakville, where she completed a Bachelor of Craft & Design in Glass and Certificate of Creativity & Creative Problem Solving in 2019. During her education she had a Summer Residency at the glass studio at Harbourfront Centre as well as assisted the contestants on the Netflix show “Blown Away”. Following graduation, she worked at Sheridan as Teaching Assistant and Studio Monitor. In 2020, Lindsey became a resident artist in Living Art Centre’s glass studio as part of the New Graduate residency program where she continues to expand her practice. Lindsey works alongside her partner, Em McDonald, with their business Lilac Glass.The pair design and fabricate art glass & jewellery & participate in markets throughout the GTA.

Fire Tree

Year:
2024
Dimensions:
8.75"x4"x1.75"
Materials:
Solid Glass
Description:
Off hand sculpted hot glass "Fire Tree". A commissioned project to commemorate the 2023 fire season in the interior of BC, and the close calls and tragic consequences that resulted over the summer last year.

Artist

Ryan Bavin Ryan Bavin

Bavin Studios (renamed from Bavin Glassworks) is a glassblowing studio in Invermere, BC, established in 1988 by Pat Bavin. Pat's son Ryan now runs the studio, working in blown glass, casting, cold working, and some torch work. We produce a variety of work from vessels to sculptural forms, studio production to one offs and commissions.

The Attack

Year:
2024
Dimensions:
10.5 by 9 inches
Materials:
Glass and enamel paint
Description:
The viewer is uncomfortably placed in the position of the attacker to witness the moment when everything changes as his hand first contacts the vulnerable flesh of the unaware woman. His fingers brush against her mane, later grabbing hold of it and sinking his muscular fingers into her neck to obtain total control. In this last millisecond, she has felt his presence but has not yet had time to react. She was leading a colourful life, full of joy and elegance represented by the Asian inspired screen; she faces this window to her past and she will long to return to it. But by fate, she is to be changed, drawn into the shadows, brutalized and perhaps ruined. We will not witness the violence or suffer the consequences, but we contemplate violence against women always starting with a moment of contact and the act leaving a trail of devastation afterwards.

Artist

Laura Canterbury Laura Canterbury

Laura studies glass art techniques under the famous glass artist, Narcissus Quagliata, who pioneered many methods for painting with glass. She also learned fusing techniques from Tim Carey and traditional glass painting from Williams & Byrne in England. Themes include imagery of femininity, vulnerability, endurance and the intertwined relationship to nature. Motivated to capture female beauty in glass, her fused glass paintings are composed of delicate detail but still maintain a feel of spontaneity. Her artistic process emphasizes daydreaming to develop concepts followed by experimentation to refine and solve the technical challenges of realizing the image in glass. She often intentionally uses chemical reactions to add dimension to her pieces. The unpredictability of glass adds additional challenge, but the resulting luminosity is unparalleled by other painting mediums. Follow Laura’s artistic journey as she strives to capture womanly essence in the timeless medium of glass.

Dancing Fire

Year:
2023
Dimensions:
12" h x 4.5" dia
Materials:
blown glass
Description:
Twisting flame dances upward, rising from a bed of glowing embers, in this blown vase. While no colour can truly match the luminous glow of hot glass, this transparent garnet vase reminds us of the birth of glass in fire.

Artist

Sara Carlisle Sara Carlisle

Sara Carlisle takes joy in the small pleasures in life. The play of colour and light in the world we live in. The warmth and mischief of a pet cat. The subtle beauty and resilience of wild flowers and weeds. She captures her love of these things in her glass art. Her work draws on her own personal experience as a visual artist – she discovered watercolour painting in the early 2000’s, and very much enjoyed it, but then fell in love with glass, and began the journey that led to her becoming a glass blower in recent years. She is currently exploring two lines of work on blown glass forms: investigating movement and colour interactions in glass using frits and shards, and revisiting her botanical paintings in enamels and coldworking. Sara is currently studying glass blowing at Sheridan College, in Oakville ON, Canada. She hopes her work brings as much joy to the viewer as it does herself.

Alizé

Year:
2023
Dimensions:
80x56x50 cm
Materials:
Verre
Description:
Tout commence par le feu, une étincelle peut embraser l'esprit. Ici, Alizé est l'étincelle qui a allumé en moi la flamme de ma créativité afin de créer avec la force du feu ce symbole de la relation que nous devrions avoir avec notre mère nature. Allumer en nous notre réflexe naturel de protéger notre environnement car "tout est lié ".

Artist

Carole Doyon Carole Doyon

Specialized in glass melting. She holds a D.E.C. in visual arts and a bachelor's degree in graphic design. 2019-2020 Using clay sculptures, she experiments with the technique of casting with fused glass. Its aim is to use the typical characteristics of glass in harmony with the subject. 2021-2022 Confinement was one of exploration of materials and their interactions with each other. 2023-2024 The International Year of Glass offers him the opportunity to participate in several exhibitions. His creativity will be further challenged with his Spontaneous Sculptures in a natural environment derived from "Land art". This year, the Corning Museum of Glass has just integrated two sculptures into its archives, Honorable Mention Award won with Ookpik for the 10th ANIMAL competition. Honorable Mention Prize won with Flora and Fleur de Mars for the 9th FLOWER competition. Two international competitions with jury. Organized by TERAVARNA Gallery, California, USA.

Plasma in the Wild

Year:
2023
Dimensions:
10 in x 4 in x 6 in
Materials:
plasma filled glass vessel with custom battery pack
Description:
An installation of plasma-filled vessels in the Cascade Mountains, inviting visitors to "forest-bathe" and contemplate their relationship with the land. The luminous glass is evocative of a "will-o-wisp", a mischievous creature that draws a traveller into the unknown. GIF shows installation view at the Pilchuck School of Glass in WA, USA. 2023. Video credit courtesy of the artist. To see the full video of the artwork, please visit: https://youtu.be/oMKkDihLHnA

Artist

Leia Guo Leia Guo

As an interdisciplinary artist my practice exists at the crossroads where glassmaking, analog photography, and printmaking intersect. My previous bodies of work explored the optical potential of blown glass in the silver gelatin printing process, with a focus on distorting photographs through the exposure process. Physically overlapping and moving glass during exposure allows the two compositions that emerge to interact with each other in an intimate dialogue that would not be possible through digital methods or even analog double-exposure techniques. The result is a unique process that allows me to recreate the landscapes of my imagination and reality. These “vitreoscapes” I create are a love letter to the Albertan landscape and the memories I made while being immersed in its sublimity. Within the frame, blown glass plates and lenses turn into images of fleeting clouds and chinooks, creating moments in time that only exist within my mind. Ghostly impressions left by glass on my photo

Too Late for Remorse

Year:
2023
Dimensions:
H11" W36" D18"
Materials:
Blown Glass, hot sculpted glass, sand, canvas cloth.
Description:
Looking into a time when all things return to the earth. When they no longer exist in their current state but become absorbed back into their environment. The clear glass form represents the final step before returning to the earth, all colour and matter gone, now a ghost. The sand representative of the base material from which the object was once made and will again become. This cycle tells of a time when the earth can no longer thrive and needs to start anew. When it is too late for new policies and personal efforts to curb the destruction of our planet. When it is too late for remorse.

Artist

Ariel Hill Ariel Hill

“My work is a reflection of my environment. I am interested in the intersection between elements of the natural world and how it relates to human experience. In my work I attempt to honour the visual beauty and fine details that exist within nature in order to evoke a sense of connection between the viewer and the subject matter. My patterns and colour palette reference vast landscape as well as microscopic details of stones, plants and other organic matter.” Ariel Hill is a native artist hailing from the Six Nations and Wiikwemkoong First Nations. Hill holds a jewelry certificate from the Kootenay School of the Arts and a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the Alberta University of the Arts with a major in glass.

Embers in Spring Light

Year:
2022
Dimensions:
6.5"H x 2"W x 2"D each
Materials:
Glass
Description:
These pieces remind us that after a long winter of dark and cold, under a blanket of snow and ice, a glow remains from a fire long finished. With the return of the light, embers reach upward. Their shapes dance and their colours change with the light. The glowing fragments evoke warmth through the colours chosen and exuberance through their form. They challenge us as artists to remain optimistic and celebrate the changing of the season.

Artist

Bonny Houston Bonny Houston

Bonny Houston, born and raised in Lacadena, Saskatchewan, has been making hot glass since the mid 1980s. She finds inspiration in the colours and forms around her. Bonny received her glass art education at The Alberta College of Art and Design, The Tokyo Glass Art Institute, Red Deer College and Sheridan College. Bonny has operated her own glass studio in Calgary, Houston Hot Shop, since 1994. A committed member of the glass art community, Bonny exhibits locally, nationally and internationally, maintains an active studio practice, teaches, and still finds time to walk her Miniboz, Qloe.

Ekphrasis

Year:
2024
Dimensions:
14"x 20"
Materials:
Fused Glass, Steel
Description:
The intricate patterns created by the hand pulled murrini add depth and complexity to this artwork, igniting a sense of curiosity and wonder. As light dances through the glass, it illuminates those delicate details, creating a mesmerizing play of shadows and reflections, reminding us that even the smallest spark can ignite a fire within, fueling our creativity and inspiring us.

Artist

Dale Keating Dale Keating

Prayer Wreath

Year:
2024
Dimensions:
18"x18"
Materials:
glass and copper
Description:
"Life is a spark between two identical voids, the darkness before birth and the one after death.” Irvin D. Yalom, When Nietzsche Wept Much of what is found on the forest floor is a fleeting moment of life. It is a reminder to delight in the present moment and recognize the spark when it is lit. I like to create tiny details on small scale and then build and assemble, recreating worlds from my imagination. The glass is formed from glass powder and fired in my kilns without the use of moulds. The copper is upcycled and soldered to form branches.

Artist

Jennifer Kelly Jennifer Kelly

Jennifer Anne Kelly is a glass sculptor and instructor who lives and creates in Ottawa. Jennifer works primarily in kiln formed glass with detail work in powdered glass and flame worked elements. A unique aspect of her work is the creation of sculptures without the use of moulds or plaster. An interest in social commentary has inspired large scale public art installations that juxtapose her finely detailed interpretations of nature intended for intimate interactions. Her work has been featured internationally in Cirque du Soleil boutiques and in public and private collections. Jennifer is a previous grant recipient from the Ontario Trillium Foundation and the Ottawa Community Foundation. She recently received the award for Best in 3D at the 2021 Toronto Outdoor Art Fair. Jennifer teaches beginner to advanced techniques in glass as a guest artist internationally and at the Ottawa School of Art

Solstice

Year:
2023
Dimensions:
11 3/4” high x 24” long x 2 1/2” deep
Materials:
Fused recycled glass, enamels, wood, LED lights (backlit), remote
Description:
Solstices Winter Solstice: into the dark In the dark for months, we feel weak, colorless (white horse). During this time it is good to be in an internal state, meditative, return to self, our own inner world, so we can rejuvenate and replenish ourselves. We see the light, the possibility to emerge once more from the cave and enjoy life. It also means that even when all seems dark there is always light. Summer Solstice : into the Light Full of light, colours, strong from the sun's energy, life and playfulness (dark horse). We find balance by being down to earth, into action and intensity. Tasting life fully, we experiment and gather information to process during winter. The 2 opposites during a year's cycle : longest day - most light and shortest day - most darkness remind us that nothing is all black, nothing is all white.

Artist

Malem M. A. Lemieux Malem M. A. Lemieux

Since my early childhood I have drawn, played with colours, clay and several mediums.! ! I was fortunate enough to attend drawing and pottery classes at the Visual Art Centre.! ! I studied at the Ahuntsic College of Montreal and obtained my Graphic Arts degree in 1989 (D.E.C). Being a self-taught person, I learned computer graphics, CGI and web site programming. As a freelance artist, I design and program web sites, create computer graphics and handmade or digital illustrations in 2D or 3D (CGI). I have also drawn hyper-realistic animal illustrations and some were published in a special collection by Les Editions Québec Amérique, others for the Granby Zoo. I also created some characters and children illustrations. I discovered glass with a stained glass class, then moved on to flame working and became a professional recognized artisan. I explored glass transformation in many ways and today my favoured way is through glass painting & fusing. I choose to recycle glass, fuse it to

L'absence, l'ombre, le reflet

Year:
2024
Dimensions:
20 x 20 x 18 pouces
Materials:
Verre soufflé, verre borosilicate façonné au chalumeau, dessin gouache et encre sur papier duralar
Description:
Ces vases en verre soufflé laisse apparaître des fleurs-flammes. Ils sont apposés sur des dessins présentoirs qui évoquent l'espace réservée aux objets de verre en lien avec les couleurs utilisées pour chacun des vases. Les teintes dans la matière sont déposées tel des traits ou taches de peinture car la couleur prend une place importante dans mon travail. De plus, j'exploite les tensions dans les mise en espace des sculptures disposé dans un lieu en exploitant le vide et la saturation pour une recherche de l'équilibre. Je préconise dans le verre, le côté organiques et vaporeux des pigments qui entre dans le verre et qui lui laisse parfois sa transparence et à d'autres moments nous laisse voir les couleurs qui se trouvent à l'opposé si la lumière en permet la diffusion.

Artist

Véronique Lépine Véronique Lépine

Née à St-Casimir, vit et travaille à Montréal. Je détiens une maîtrise en arts visuels et médiatique de l'UQAM que j'ai complété en 2021. Depuis vingt ans, j'ai exposé dans plusieurs centres d'artistes, événements et expositions. Citons notamment, mes plus récentes expositions individuelles, Architecture sculpturale au Centre Langage Plus, à Alma, Les formes en porte-à-faux en 2019, à la Galerie B-312. Mes oeuvres ont également été vu, à la Manif d’art de Québec, Maison de la culture Maisonneuve, Galerie La Centrale, Montréal, à la Stadtgalerie de Berne en Suisse et lors de projet d'art urbain au Chili et en Argentine en collaboration avec Guillaume La Brie. Je suis également cofondatrice de l'Organisme d'art actuel urbain Pique-Nique. Mon travail a été présenté en 2024, à La Galerie d'art du Parc à Trois-Rivières et est présentement à la Maison de la Culture de Longueuil jusqu'au 22 décembre 2024l

Blind Contour #5

Year:
2024
Dimensions:
20" H x 13" W x 1" D
Materials:
Flameworked Glass
Description:
This piece is from a series of work translating blind contour drawings of queer people into glass using a flameworking technique. This method of drawing has a well established history in the art world and consists of very slowly and methodically drawing a portrait of someone while looking only at them and not at your page. In my mind this is a portrait distilled to its essence and is the physical manifestation of really looking at someone. I created a series of these drawings with queer individuals as the subjects to fabricate a body of work dedicated to the looking and seeing of 2SLGBTQ+ people who often get viewed as a political body rather than an individual with their own unique concept of self and queerness.

Artist

Em McDonald Em McDonald

Em McDonald is an emerging glass artist from Georgetown, Ontario. They moved to Toronto and received a Bachelor Degree from York University in Philosophy, where they focused on art and aesthetics. They chose to continue exploring these ideas as a maker and so pursued another degree in the Craft and Design program at Sheridan College focusing on glass sculpture. Em is now a Resident Artist at the Living Arts Centre where they continue to further their artistic practice and teach. Together with their partner Lindsey Adelman they run Lilac Glass and fabricate glass art, jewellery, and decor.

Wasser Pendant

Year:
2024
Dimensions:
1.1 cm wide x 1.4 cm high x 0.5 cm deep
Materials:
Wasser glass, sterling silver
Description:
Kiln formed Wasser glass bead cabochon, 1.1cm ø, set in sterling silver with a 1.7mm x 45.7 cm (18") long sterling silver Belcher chain.

Artist

William Popiel William Popiel

WILLIAM POPIEL The transformation of sunlight through stained glass has always excited me. From the penciled concept to the finished work, stories big, small, and sometimes hidden, are realized. Coalesced from selected glass refraction properties, color frequency, line and form, to truly move your soul. My work uniquely often contains hand painted and fired imagery and symbols as the principal element in the piece, or to add further interest to the work overall.

Albedos

Year:
2023
Dimensions:
Largest component, 6x6x2 inches
Materials:
Glass
Description:
The Albedos are a series I feel I'm still very much in discovery with. I don't know what they are yet. I don't know what I want them to be. I don't know how to make them. I'm still not fully committed to the name. But there is irrefutably "something" there, something I would like to explore. They are a work in progress I am excited to see develop and am hoping will take a long time to finish.

Artist

Rob Raeside Rob Raeside

STEP INTO MY WORLD

Year:
2023
Dimensions:
14 ½ x 10 ½ x 3 ½ inches
Materials:
System 96. Dichroic & Iridescent Glass. Kiln-Fired. Eco-Resin. Artist Signed in 24K Gold. Ash Wood.
Description:
I find profound resonance in Atticus Finch's wise counsel: "You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view…until you climb in his skin and walk around in it." This compassionate ethos fuels the way that I see the world. It also celebrates the mosaic of diversity within my chosen extended family. Each individual that we draw into our circle enriches our collective story with their unique perspectives, fostering learning regardless of age, race, or circumstance. Layering stories in glass, I celebrate our connections with colour and intricate detail to showcase love’s ability to transcend barriers and unite hearts. Just as in my creative journey, there is endless inspiration to embrace growth, empathy, and understanding. Consider the overwhelming potential for global transformation when humanity unites in harnessing the limitless power of compassion within the human spirit. — Oded Ravek $3400

Artist

Pamela Ravek Pamela Ravek

Leather Wrapped Citrus Stack

Year:
2024
Dimensions:
H:36cm x W:17cm x D:17cm
Materials:
Glass, Leather Metal
Description:
Blown glass, hot attached component sculpture, adorned with a custom leather harness.

Artist

Lauren Rice Lauren Rice

Lauren Rice is a glass artist from Manitoba now based in the GTA. Lauren studied glassblowing at Sheridan College and achieved a Bachelor of Craft and Design. She  creatively mixes mediums, incorporating materials like underglaze which is traditionally used in ceramics. This unique approach adds texture and dimension to her organic and whimsical glass sculptures, transporting viewers to a nostalgic place of childhood. Lauren teaches art classes to children and draws inspiration from their sense of  wonder.  Her work invites observers to rediscover the magic inherent in the natural world.

Zombie Fire

Year:
2022
Dimensions:
4" H x 5" diameter
Materials:
Blown glass, glass murrini
Description:
Zombie Fire is a representation of the fires that burn under the forest floor during the winter. The layers of murrini represent the layers of sedementary rock and footsteps walking through the forest embers.

Artist

Kirsten Spouler Kirsten Spouler

Kirsten has been working with glass since August 2019 and has taken the majority of her training from her local glass studio at Terminal City Glass Co-op in Vancouver, BC. She has also attended classes at the Corning Museum of Glass in 2022 and 2023. Kirsten works primarily as a Registered Massage Therapist in Vancouver and takes her extensive knowledge and training in anatomy as an influence in her art and glass work. She is drawn to the use of bright opaque colours mixed with black glass. She has been exploring the use of murrini to develop pattern. Finding a passion and a creative outlet with the use of hot molten glass has allowed Kirsten to express herself in her art as well as create unique one of a kind pieces. She has shown work at the Pendulum Gallery in Vancouver and Port Moody art Gallery in 2023.

Stumped

Year:
2023
Dimensions:
18" L x 8" H x 0.5" W
Materials:
Blown Glass, Magnetic Mount
Description:
A glass painting made to mimic the motion of our natural surroundings.

Artist

Paul van den Bijgaart Paul van den Bijgaart

Paul van den Bijgaart was born in Edmonton, Alberta. His youth was fueled with a pursuit for adrenaline through downhill ski racing, mountain biking, and skateboarding. This life in motion eventually led him to a weekend glassblowing workshop at Red Deer College in 2007. Since then, he’s continued his studies at Haliburton School of the Arts, Sheridan College, Pilchuck Glass School, and The Corning Museum of Glass. In 2015 a leap of faith led him to Beijing China. For the next 4 years he traveled China and became intrigued by Chinese ink painting. Throughout his travels a seed of a new man was planted, and with the skills gained from his youthful love of motion and western studio practice alongside a new found philosophy and understanding of the world. He’s attempting to find a balance and harmony within the studio to create meaningful objects that people can relate to in the rituals and ceremonies of daily life.

Chrome Prototype no.1

Year:
2024
Dimensions:
13.1 x 13.1 x 5.9 cm
Materials:
Blown Glass, Chrome Paint
Description:
Chrome Prototype no.1 is the first in a series of blown glass pieces that play with light, reflection, translucency, and opacity. These pieces explore the organic forms and movement through hand painted surface decoration. Chrome Prototype no.1 is inspired by wood grain and topographic maps. Growth lines spiral around each other, changing course as their environment shifts. The chrome surfacing acts as both a mask and a mirror. Light is obstructed and reflected in the same instance, creating shadows that evolve as the piece is rotated.

Artist

Sydni Weatherson Sydni Weatherson

After completing Art Fundamentals in 2018, I applied for the Crafts and Design program at Sheridan College upon seeing a demonstration at an open house event where I fell in love with glass. In April of 2022, I was accepted into Harbourfront Centre's Artist in Residence program as a full-time artist. My time in the studio is spent focusing on blown glass forms as well as engraving. My current work looks to capture the fluidity of the glass during the making process, exploring colour, texture, and movement frozen in time through the excavation of layers.

Santo Andre

Year:
2023
Dimensions:
3.5" - 7"
Materials:
Cast Crystal Glass
Description:
Santo Andre ignites discussions on heritage, collective memory, and the rewriting of histories. The small statue is modeled after a Chilean saint, 3d scanned from a soft lead antique original, capturing all the dents and wear over the decades. The noise from the scan is reproduced in the final cast crystal, rendering the final work indiscernible from the original concept/object.

Artist

Gabriela Wilson Gabriela Wilson

Artist Gabriela Wilson is renowned for incorporating glass and metal, blending technical expertise with contemporary aesthetics. Her exploration of glass's tactile and transformative qualities, particularly through kiln-formed glass, is informed by formal training in jewellery, gemmology, and sculpture, shaping her technical approach to the medium crafting narratives that captivate visually and instinctively. Gabriela has studied at numerous institutes across North America, including Craft and Design at Sheridan College, with a glass major, graduating in 2014. She is pursuing her BAH in Studio Arts, focusing on sculpture, at the University of Guelph, with a minor in Museum Studies. She has received multiple awards and scholarships, including Ontario Arts Council and Canada Council for the Arts grants.

Scrap

Year:
2023
Dimensions:
4x4x5
Materials:
Glass
Description:
A fun cast glass price with the broken remains of projects

Artist

Cheryl Wilson smith Cheryl Wilson smith