Finding inspiration in botanical forms, surface-pattern and the human figure, Alison Mac Cormaic employs mosaic to investigate the intersection between nature and culture. She uses Mexican smalti, a unique, handmade, opaque glass with a luminous natural resonance. Building on intuitive colour responses, her work explores the joyful juxtaposition of colour blocks, with the selection, matching and rearranging of elements always a significant element in her process. Exploring a strong agency of personal drawings and mark making, she creates work developed from observation, with a rapidly drawn line or contour often informing a whole mosaic.
Archives: Artists
New Artists and reviews
Her 53 years long career culminated in 3 major retrospective exhibitions:
– at Wagga Wagga Art Glass Gallery, home of National Glass Collection, in December 2023 – March 2024
– at Chasen Gallery at the Mark in Sarasota, FL, January 2024
– at Sabbia Gallery in Sydney, Australia, in May – June 2025
Her work is represented in the recent book ’Pâte de Verre: The Material of Time“,
by author(s) Max Stewart &Tone Ørvik, 2022,
Schiffer Publishing ISBN: 9780764363177
I am young as a glass artist who loves to experiment and explore new techniques. I enjoy working with glass and metals, exploring their reactive potential, and combining glass with unconventional objects.
Recently I’ve been developing both my enamel-painting and flame working techniques to produce pieces that combine both disciplines. I find that flame working in particular allows me to represent the fragility and complexity of botanical forms against fairly robust kiln-formed backgrounds.
My current practice is focussed on stained glass and kiln-formed glass powders.
In her recent Portraits in Glass series, she seeks to capture the essence of the individuals behind the images.