Glass Art Association of Canada

Gleaming Prospects

Winter 2020 Members’ Exhibition

The Glass Art Association of Canada invites you to view our winter members’ exhibition, Gleaming Prospects - Bringing Back the Future Through Celebration.

The end of the year and the start of a new year hosts many special occasions for glass making. Gleaming Prospects, showcases Canadian Glass art in all forms, highlighting the many reasons why we make glass art.

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.

Follow me

Year:
2020
Dimensions:
8" x 3.5"
Materials:
Blown glass
Description:
I love reusing remnants of earlier pieces. This takes the offcut from a piece made with cane and overlays it on top of a deep ocean blue. I find the effect mesmerizing.

Artist

Cynthia Barrett Cynthia Barrett

Cynthia Barrett is a graduate of the glass certificate program at the Haliburton School of Art and Design. She continues to expand her glass vocabulary through additional courses including those at the Studio at the Corning Museum of Glass. Her work is informed by her previous career in finance and accounting as well as her fascination with the optical qualities unique to glass.

Hummingbird

Year:
2020
Dimensions:
3' x 3" x 3"
Materials:
Borosilicate
Description:
I am a die-hard Glassblower that has dedicated my education and growth to being just that; a Glass Artist. I have and will continue to pour my entire heart and soul into this art form for as long as I draw breath. Be it hot, cold, hard or soft. You can usually find me in the studio working diligently at honing my craft. Glass engulfed my childhood. Half of my adolescence, I spent growing up in the glass blowing culture of Malta, an island south of Sicily. This is where my obsession truly began and it started with the collection of glass birds made from the different studio around Malta. After moving to Canada and attending the Alberta University of the Arts, formerly known as ACAD, I began to hone my calling. Since that moment, I have never looked back. My goal is to learn all there is to know about glass. These Hummingbirds represent my calling. I have started on my pursuit to create a series on North American birds to represent both my heritage and my lineage.

Artist

Alana Biffert Alana Biffert

Alana Biffert; BIOGRAPHY Alana Biffert’s studio practise is expansive, often driven by the exploration into various techniques. Biffert’s accumulative skills are built in both hard and soft glass. Her obsession for this material is mirrored by the depth of her skill set, materialized through her passion for the Arts. A European upbringing constructed the first decade of Biffert’s life in the glass culture of Malta, a small island in the Mediterranean Sea. Glass engulfed her childhood with a dream of becoming a glassblower. Biffert took home a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Glass from Alberta University of the Arts in 2008. Through volunteering locally, she landed a life changing job as a Glass technician at Red Deer College. Opportunities blossomed and after working with several well-known local artists, Biffert spent the next two years in her pursuit on a professional level. Welcoming every opportunity, Biffert worked with various talents in New Zealand, Australia and Croatia

Stack top

Year:
2020
Dimensions:
10"x6.5"x6.5"
Materials:
Hand blown glass
Description:
My current explorations in glass involve the term "Coaxial", meaning the sharing of a centre point or a centre axis. Through the use of solid colours and simple geometric forms such as spheres, cones and cylinders, combined together and stacked at their relative co-axis', I want my work to evoke a purity of shape and form that act in a similar way to graphic works and imagery, reducing to their most broad elements like colour, silhouette and negative space

Artist

Graham Boyd Graham Boyd

I am a glass blower and multi-media artist born and raised in Calgary, Alberta. In May of 2020 I had the pleasure of graduating with a BFA from the wonderful Glass program at the Alberta University of the Arts. I am very fortunate to be able to make work at a local studio once a week, but due to the worlds current situations, career pursuits in glass have been put on a stand still. With such a broad and globe trotting community, I'm so glad we have institutions like GAAC to bring us together in times like these.

Au naturel

Year:
2018
Dimensions:
32 pouces (hauteur) x 18 pouces (diamètre)
Materials:
Verre coulé, acier peint, peau de phoque, vitre
Description:
Table-poème inspirée de la réalité insulaire madelinienne (Îles-de-la-Madeleine) qu'est la tradition de la chasse aux loup-marins. Le naturel. Naturel comme les saisons qui reviennent chaque année. Naturel comme la glace qui se crée par temps froid. Naturel comme l'homme qui sillonne la banquise en tirant son canot, les yeux avides de taches sur l'horizon.

Artist

Catherine Chevrier Turbide Catherine Chevrier Turbide

I am a young artist born in the Iles-de-la-Madeleine, a beautiful archipelago in eastern Canada. Returned to practice arts in my home region after studying communication, visual arts and marine biology, I work with glass at La Méduse, in the workshop where my father, who is a glassblower as well, has passed on me his know-how and passion for working with glass. Today, firmly rooted in my practice and my environment, it is the encounters between glass and people that are at the heart of my artistic approach. I look for the common thread, link, bridge that will bring out a new approach to the material I touch. I create and practice in Îles-de-la-Madeleine, in the heart of the Gulf of St. Lawrence since 2013.

Habitat

Year:
2017
Dimensions:
7.25" x 6" x 5"
Materials:
Glass, Wood
Description:
Hot sculpted glass grizzly bear on found drift wood.

Artist

Ed Colberg Ed Colberg

Ed Colberg is inspired by nature, our nature and intangible aspects of human experience. Ed began working with hot glass in 2005. He has studied glass blowing and glass sculpture with many extremely talented artists in the Canadian and international glass art community. He earned a BFA with Distinction from Alberta College of Art + Design and was a full time Aritist-in-Residence in the Glass Studio at Harbourfront Centre from 2014 - 2017. Ed has exhibited nationally and internationally. He currently creates in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Spiral Waltz

Year:
2019
Dimensions:
sizes vary - 2" x 3" x 2" to 5" x 5" x 4.5"
Materials:
kiln-cast and cold-worked glass
Description:
This wall installation consists of over 50 pieces that vary in size. Each unique piece spirals outwards and the transparent glass describes coloured shadows and reflections add to the feeling of movement. The shape of this work is created by recording a dancer's movement in a motion capture studio and converting these movement pathways into 3 dimensional form using computer software , a 3D printer and the liost wax casting technique.

Artist

Jerre DAVIDSON Jerre DAVIDSON

Born in Edinburgh, Scotland, Jerre Davidson studied at The Scottish Ballet School and later danced professionally. These early experiences are fundamental to her identity and her love of dance and music is evident in the flowing cast glass sculptures she creates. Each sculpture explores the shifting rhythms of a particular space and she uses gestural shapes, light, shadow and reflection, to captures these spatial rhythms. Jerre studied at various centers of excellence in glass education, including Pilchuck, WA; The Studio, Corning, NY; and North Lands Creative in Caithness, Scotland. Jerre works out of her studio in Southern Ontario, Canada.

Little Joy Amulet Basket

Year:
2020
Dimensions:
12" high 14" long 9" wide
Materials:
blown and flameworked glass
Description:
Little Joy Amulet Basket

Artist

Laura Donefer Laura Donefer

Lidded Vessel

Year:
2019
Dimensions:
10" x 6" x 6"
Materials:
Glass
Description:
Two part lidded vessel.

Artist

Courtney Downman Courtney Downman

Courtney Downman is a Canadian Glass Artist and Instructor. Courtney began working with glass in September of 2012 after enrolling in the Craft and Design program at Sheridan College. Upon graduating Courtney worked as a Teaching assistant in the glass program at Sheridan. In 2016 Courtney was awarded a two year artist-in-residence fellowship at the Living Arts Centre in Mississauga, ON. This past year Courtney worked as an artist-in-residence in the Glass studio at Sheridan College. Courtney is currently completing her Bachelors in Craft and Design at Sheridan. ?

Hookpik

Year:
2020
Dimensions:
10'' largeur X 7'' hauteur X 6'' profondeur
Materials:
Verre fusion moulé, thermoformé et sculpté
Description:
OOKPIK Harfang des neiges en Innu Cette petite sculpture représentait un défi personnel. Concevoir cet oiseau en deux plans, le corps massif et les ailes plus fluides. Utiliser le verre pour ses qualités de souplesse, de fondue et de transparence. Je désirais que l’oiseau naisse de la matière que la neige où transparence et opacité s’entremêlent, où neige et glace ne font qu’un pour former cet oiseau nordique. Que le verre transparent et le verre opaque s’entremêle là où il le faut. Le Harfang est une espèce protégée mais est quand même menacé par le réchauffement de la planète. Quand je les vois au dessus du champs, planner silencieusement. Blanc sur blanc. Je veux les immortaliser, blanc sur blanc, les pieds dans la glace.

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. The clay becomes an accomplice by integrating itself into the sculpture. 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". I realized that several of my sculptures represented "Beauty in Peril. This year, the Corning Museum of Glass has just integrated my sculptures into its archives, It is the largest collection of contemporary glass images in the world of the last 44 years.

Ocean Waves

Year:
2020
Dimensions:
Six pieces of about 12” x 14” x 3” each
Materials:
Glass (pâte de verre)
Description:
I grew up in a big garden by the sea. In the 13th century, there was an outstanding poet who was, at the same time, the ruler of Japan. I love reading and re-reading his powerful poems of the sea. The rhythmic, dancing, joyous movement of waves resonates not only in me but is translated into the glass pieces I make.

Artist

Eiko Emori Eiko Emori

I started taking pâte-de-verre classes at the Sanko glass factory in an industrial area in Tokyo in the days when there were many glass factories in that particular Ward. My academic degrees and honours are: National Diploma in Design (Central School of Arts & Crafts, London, England), Master of Fine Arts (Yale University, New Haven, USA), member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts, Fellow of Graphic Designers of Canada. I have also studied at Académie Grand Chaumière, Paris, France and the Studio, Corning Museum of Glass, Corning, USA. I am fascinated with the light, colours and translucency that the pâte-de-verre technique produces in glass. The author Marshall McLuhan's phrase, “the medium is the message”, describes what I do. I am forever pursuing new expressions of colours, lights and texture, as well as the limits of the technique. It is the challenge that keeps me going. Contact: mail@designerglassstudio.ca

Pride

Year:
2019
Dimensions:
12x6x8
Materials:
Glass
Description:
For me, the creation of each sculpture is as important as the sculpture itself. To me hot sculpting reminiscent of experiencing emotions, expressed by the posture and colour. This piece is about celebrating and taking pride in the body, each body unique and worthy, emotions I struggle to feel to feel about myself. Making this a precious moment captured that I have felt this way, and a reminder that I will be able to experience those emotions again. The colour pallet flavouring these pieces are ones work together to express the feelings of joy and excitement, applied differently across each piece but still creates a sense of unity in their expression. I find process of cold working to be meditative, allowing me to think and analyze what I have done and felt, and react to it with fresh eyes, and with these pieces it was to build on the euphoric energy that I so rarely experience about myself. The patterns I engraved on these pieces are symbolic of mind and body balance, as well as a focus on the center of the body, and celebration.

Artist

Victoria Guy Victoria Guy

Victoria guy was born and raised in Mississauga and grew up influenced by her parents love of books. She has had strong interest in drawing since a young age, and pursued art throughout high school, her passion leading her to enrolling in the Honorary Bachelors of Craft and Design specializing in glass making. Victoria creates sculptures of the female torso in glass, using layers of opaque colours which she carves into to reveal the layers underneath. Through making these sculptures she is her identity and how that relates to her body image. Victoria sees her work as part of a conversation is she having with herself, trying to navigate these messages while exploring her identity after dealing with mental health issues throughout her life. By placing these individual sculptures together, they speak to the collective effect of these experiences and emotions, and how these small individual feelings play a larger role in developing on herself concept.

Sediment Series

Year:
2020
Dimensions:
H 8.5", W 15"
Materials:
Blown glass.
Description:
This is an ongoing series that I started as part of my grad work while attending Alberta University for the Arts. I continue to add new colour variations in response to new landscapes and geological patterns I discover through my travels. The central concept remains the same. The 'Sediment Series' focuses on the layers of geological formations and how it relates to human experience. The sedimentary layers serve as a reminder of the expanse of time that has passed in the complex creation of the earth and how we fit within that existence.

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.

Chassé du Jardin d'Eden ( Chased from the Garden of Eden)

Year:
2017
Dimensions:
14 x 24 x 24 pouces
Materials:
Verre soufflé, verre massif, carton, papier, encre pigmentée, acrylique, gazon artificiel, Del.
Description:
Cette oeuvre a été inspirée par un cas de censure, en 2017, de six peintures qui ont été retirées d'une exposition. Il semble que la nudité en peinture, bien que très courante à travers de nombreux siècles, soit toujours controversée, en tout cas elle était certainement dans une galerie pas trop éloignée de ma propre ville. C'est dans ce contexte que j'ai imaginé qu'Adam et Eve étaient bannis du jardin d'Eden. / This sculpture was inspired by a censorship case, in 2017, of six paintings that were removed from an exhibition. It seems that nudity in painting, though very common throughout many centuries, is still controversial, in any case it sure was at a gallery not too far from my own city. It was in this context that I imagined Adam and Eve being banished from the Garden of Eden. Photo : René Rioux

Artist

Michèle Lapointe Michèle Lapointe

Michèle Lapointe is a seasoned glass artist, also working with photography, lost objects and other materials to elaborate complex and fascinating installations imbued with bittersweet reminiscence of childhood. Glass recipients gather doll heads as mock scientific exams, the pillows get glassy and transform into morphing surfaces for the video: the unattainable search for the truth of the past is materialised by those vain attempts. The plastic wealth of the materials, the melancholy and the poetic spirit that animate the artworks provide a one-of-a-kind and moving experience to the audience. Pascale Beaudet, Independent curator. She is interested in cross-practices of contemporary art and crafts.

Sun Shy Bowl

Year:
2020
Dimensions:
10”
Materials:
Glass powders, enamels, micas
Description:
Glass powders and enamels crackled in kiln paper, kiln carved, fired multiple times and cold worked.

Artist

Eva Lazar Eva Lazar

Firefighter Below the Sea of Smog

Year:
2019
Dimensions:
20cm x 25cm
Materials:
Colour glass vitreograph on white somerset. Two layers. Varied Edition.
Description:
This vitreograph is a response to the accelerating rate of forest fires in North America due to climate change. As a Romanticist, I was pleased yet dismayed to find a manipulated photograph that mimicked Friedrich's Wandering Above the Sea of Fog. Determined to capture the spirit and sublime of the landscape, I employed my skills in vitreography and pulled various editions. Each pass possesses interesting qualities that capture the intensity and life of a wildfire, as well as the murky and suffocating destruction it unleashes.

Artist

Gosia Martyniak Gosia Martyniak

Boardmember on the Communications & Marketing Team. Expressing interest in an artistic career, I attended Western University and achieved my Bachelor of Fine Arts, specializing in printmaking for its laborious and mechanical charm. I then decided to continue education in hopes of further developing my identity in the art world. The pursuit brought me to the Craft and Design Bachelor program at Sheridan College. I specialized in glass kilnforming, which includes kilncasting, fusing, enamel and silver stain painting. You can find my studio work under Willowind Studios. In addition to my hybrid studio practice, I am an illustrator who runs online print-on-demand shops under the name Spicy Honey Heart. I'm known for generating digital drawings and paintings incorporating glass culture, available for purchase. My designs are organized on Society6, Redbubble & Art of Where.

"Liens d'espoir" (vue de l'icosaèdre de verre)

Year:
2018
Dimensions:
Dimensions de l'icosaèdre de verre, H: 13 po X L: 13 po X P: 13 po
Materials:
verre clair (thermoformage), filtre polarisant, cuivre, bois, éclairage intégré, trépied
Description:
Illustré dans les travaux de Léonard de Vinci, l’icosaèdre symbolise l’harmonie. Liens d’espoir, reprend cette forme en suggérant une action à travers: la lumière, la transparence du verre et l’art de la métamorphose. Cet icosaèdre, sur trépied récupéré, est constitué de 20 triangles équilatéraux en verre. Sur 19 d’entre eux figurent des noeuds celtiques, réalisés à partir de 3 torons de cordage, thermoformés dans le verre. Ces pièces sont percées et assemblées avec 20 fils de cuivre noués. Ce montage repose sur une boîte lumineuse, circulaire, recouverte d’une feuille de cuivre, reprenant la représentation des mêmes noeuds. Cette boîte est percée au centre pour recevoir le dernier triangle. Constitué d’un filtre polarisant et d’un ensemble de lignes découpée en cellophane, insérés entre 2 verres flottés, ce triangle interagit avec la lumière en la décomposant en couleurs. Le participant, muni d’un accessoire polarisant, pourra découvrir l’effet chromo-cinétique de l’ oeuvre.

Artist

Colette Matte Colette Matte

Colette Matte est une artiste de la région de Québec, bachelière en arts plastiques de l’UQTR, qui adhère aux théories visant à promouvoir un art plus communautaire. Son travail avec le verre réfère à l’art optique et à l’expérience chromo-cinétique avec la lumière. Voici pourquoi, elle réalise et diffuse, depuis plus de 20 ans, des oeuvres uniques: des sculptures autoportantes, des oeuvres in situ et éphémères, des installations interactives ainsi que des projets participatifs. C’est donc à travers ses oeuvres de verre, associées à la participation active du public, qu’elle tente de matérialiser la présence de l’énergie invisible de la lumière et ainsi célébrer les bienfaits du vivre ensemble. Ses oeuvres publiques sont étroitement liées avec le lieu et son histoire. Membre du GAAC depuis 1995, ses oeuvres ont été exposées au Québec, en Ontario et aux États-Unis.

Anomalous Chronometer

Year:
March/2019
Dimensions:
18” w x 14” h
Materials:
Stained Glass - Lead came construction with Spectrum, Bullseye, & Saint Just (blue) glass c/w found
Description:
This clock attempts to grasp the elusive tick of the universe. So the internal parts required to make a mechanical clock “tick” are a major element of this piece. All printed on two stacked layers of glass, making the mechanism three dimensional. The face is done in saturated colours of transparent glass. The antique blue not only pushes the yellow forward, but the striations or folds in the glass makes it shimmer when you move by. The yellow clock hours are a mix of numbers and text in two groups of three. A conscious design choice not generally see in clock faces. The added wire work compliments the clock characters, and unifies the support system that suspends the clock.

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.

Ancient Oceans / close up

Year:
2020
Dimensions:
20" x 14" tall
Materials:
Fused and Blown Glass / Stone
Description:
Vitrigraph and Blown out Bullseye Glass

Artist

Leslie Rowe-Israelson Leslie Rowe-Israelson

Leslie Rowe-Israelson is an internationally recognized glass artist. She has spent the last 40 years working primarily in the cast / fused glass genre developing and refining innovative techniques that now give her an artistic "voice" that is stylistically unique around the globe. Her diverse portfolio of world class glass art, includes exquisitely delicate sculptures, bold and brilliantly colorful panels and a broad range of intricate open face vessels and plates. Much of her fused work is constructed through a complex process involving detailed glass cutting and multiple kiln firings. The work is often combined with or presented on, elements of hand forged steel and hand carved and polished stone that she has collected from the western slopes of the Canadian Rockies near her home. Leslie possesses a deep and very personal appreciation for mountain landscapes and understands the strong link between "place" and the people who chose to visit or live there.

PEI Summer Solstice

Year:
2020
Dimensions:
25” x 12” x 3/16”
Materials:
Glass
Description:
Free standing kiln formed panel, fused glass

Artist

Susana Rutherford Susana Rutherford

Susana Rutherford, born in Spain, immigrated to Canada in 1976. She graduated with honors from the Ontario College of Art and Design, Toronto, Ontario. Susana’s passion for glass began at a very young age after visiting Chartres in France. The exploration of color and light are two elements of the medium of glass that the artist never tires of. An apprenticeship at Solarium Design in glass in Toronto grew into a ten-year position. She has exhibited in nationally and internationally and her work is in private collections around the globe, and in the Prince Edward Island Art Bank. Her work had been published in books documenting international glass artists. Susana Rutherford is the owner of Firehorse Studios and has completed many private, ecclesiastical and corporate commissions in glass over a thirty-year period. Rutherford was President of the PEI Crafts Council and the PEI, representative to the Canadian Crafts Federation.

Teal boat collaboration work between Dalia saafan and Andrea Itzeck

Year:
2020
Dimensions:
23 3/4" x 2 3/5" x 6 1/4"
Materials:
Colored fused glass , 3mm copper wires, copper frame
Description:
With the Alberta Craft Council's call for craft collaboration Dalia Saafan and Andrea Itzeck got in touch to begin the adventure of creating pieces that are a fusion of glass and metal. The idea for creating the boat was a long desired artistic endeavor. The process of working with fused glass involves many steps and challenges. The initial step in the process of making the fused glass boat, started with using plaster and clay to make a mold for the glass. Working with glass is a long journey requiring patience. During the firing process, one of the sides of the boat cracked so beautifully in such a way that we could not even break it so artistically had we tried. There was beauty in the imperfection in the shape of the glass and we decided to leverage this uniqueness in the glass by connecting the broken pieces rather than repeat the firing process. The glass pieces were curved in two different directions, so to connect them together with copper was a challenging process requiring skilled craftsmanship. We agreed to include the imperfections of the cracked glass and emphasize the cracks and celebrate the beauty of the imperfection rather than disguise it. This artistic piece is a metaphor of our lives- imperfection is perfection in its rawest form because in the end there really is no such thing as perfect.

Artist

Dalia Saafan Dalia Saafan

Artist Biography Dalia Saafan, a graphic designer and teacher, earned her Bachelor of Interior Design degree in 1993 in her native Egypt.She arrived in Canada in 1995 and continued to work as an instructor, craft producer, and designer. It wasn’t until Dalia moved to Canada that she was introduced to her current medium of choice: glass. Dalia found glass to be a discipline that could blend all her creative strengths: painting, interior design, and warm glass. Her work combines elements of Bedouin culture and near eastern rural colours with the addition of plant-inspired motifs and Arabic or English calligraphy. Her portfolio includes an array of spontaneous and methodical exhibition and retail pieces, but also a number of unique commissions. Dalia’s style celebrates both her Egyptian roots and her new Canadian home. Dalia Is a Professional Member at Alberta Craft Council.

Alberta Wild Bison

Year:
2019
Dimensions:
11 x 11 x 1.75
Materials:
Bullseye glass, enamels, black oak frame
Description:
Early in the spring, these majestic creatures emerge with their winter coats falling away. I love to use unexpected color to draw the viewer in.

Artist

Kimberly Smith Kimberly Smith

Kimberly Smith is an accomplished artist. She has been selling and showing her unique artwork for over 35 years. Kimberly’s art has been featured in galleries in Alberta and the Yukon and is held in private collections in Canada, the US and Japan. Although her medium has shifted from pottery to glass over the years her unique use of color and desire to capture the Alberta landscape and wildlife remains the same. Kimberly has been teaching art for over 30 years – she has taught watercolor, oils, acrylics, ceramics and pen and ink and kiln fired glass.

Deceitful Charms

Year:
2020
Dimensions:
12" H 6" W
Materials:
Blown Glass, Watercolour Paint, Marble
Description:
In an effort to redefine the relationship between fine art and traditional craft, Deceitful Charms is created with watercolour paint carefully applied to a glass vessel. It uses the forgotten victorian tradition of floriography and the common symbol of the koi fish to tell a tale of caution. The datura flower, known for its sweet smell, is highly poisonous if ingested. In the victorian era, it was used in early witchcraft for the making of love potions, but also has strong symbolic connections to physical and mental disturbances. Similarly, in Japan, to have a black koi fish in one's pond is said to bring wealth, prosperity, and good fortune. However, the black koi fish is often seen as malevolent, or a symbol of death in other cultures. These symbols work together to remind us that beyond the allure of aesthetic beauty, remains an element of danger.

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.

Teal Faceted pendant

Year:
2020
Dimensions:
1"
Materials:
Crystal Glass & Sterling Silver
Description:
The Covid-19 pandemic and a return to (virtual) school have redirected my focus to my jewellery line, Shiny Monkey. Making jewellery grounds me and takes me back to my roots, pre-glass school, and studies in jewellery and gemmology. These facetted gems are made using recycled kilncast crystal glass, hand facetted, with sterling silver components. The crystal gem is made using recycled crystal combined with opaline for a fiery play of colour, reminiscent of natural white opals. This line is currently available through Craft Ontario, The Canadian Clay and Glass, and Mountain Grass Glass Gallery & Smoke Shop. There is an assortment of colours as well as matching earrings.

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.

Red Broch

Year:
2020
Dimensions:
7.5x7.5 x 5.5
Materials:
glass
Description:
Layered glass sphere with another glass sphere inside

Artist

Cheryl Wilson smith Cheryl Wilson smith

“I”-3

Year:
2020
Dimensions:
25''x 18''x 16''
Materials:
Flameworked glass
Description:
“I” is the first work I made unintentionally when I was new to glass art and became a prototype of my later series. Later I realized that the work was related to my long-term interests in finding inner-self and growth. I firmly believe that my soul and mind should not be trapped by any measuring media. They should grow, spread willfully and transcend to infinity, like the sprout of a seed breaking through the shackles of the soil, which grows wildly to become what it truly is. As soil is an indispensable environment for the growth of seeds, the invisible mind is always bound by the tangible body. While the body is the foundation of the mind, what binds you will eventually support you as well. This series of works indicate my dialectical views on restraint and freedom.

Artist

Zihao Xiong Zihao Xiong

His works focused on the concepts of self-expression and examination of identity, using the temperance and fragility of glass to highlight the difference between inner truth and external perceived identity. Zihao was born in a city built in mountains in China and grew up in a modern society while surrounded by the beauty of nature. As the unique duality fascinated him, he has a desire to find the link between contradiction and balance. His time in Canada has significantly impacted his work. Since enrolling at Sheridan College he has developed his concept through kiln-casted and flameworked sculpture.

I Can’t Drink With You Any More

Year:
2019
Dimensions:
70 cm * 30 cm
Materials:
Glass
Description:
Transfer from one hand to another Time flees Left the heat

Artist

YUAN Yin YUAN Yin