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Mark Angus solo exhibition in Germany

Glass master Mark Angus is holding a solo exhibition of glass, painting, collage, print and text at the District Gallery at Neuburg Castle in Germany.

Open now until 3 April 2024, the show is entitled, ‘80 Capriccios und anddere Verstörungen’ (literal translation: ‘80 capriccios and other disturbances’).

In his installation ‘80 Capriccios’, Angus used glass and lyrical text to illuminate an insecure and sacred present-day self. He now continues this path at Neuburg am Inn Castle. This new exhibition presents a representative part of the ‘Capriccios’ body of work created in 2018 and leads on from it. From soul-searching, fear and experiencing crises, Angus expands his view of the ‘other disorders’ experienced by people today.

The exhibition is open Tuesday to Sunday, 11am to 5pm at Landkreisgalerie auf Schloss Neuburg, Am Burgberg 2, 94127 Neuburg am Inn, Germany.

https://landkreisgalerie.de

www.landkreis-passau.de

Image: Detail of Mark Angus’ work in the exhibition.

Apply for The Venice Glass Week

The application process is open for the eighth edition of The Venice Glass Week, which will take place around Venice, Mestre and Murano in Italy from 14 to 22 September 2024.

Applications are invited from any organisation, institution, company or individual, from Italy or abroad, who would like to propose an event or project relating to artistic glass. Candidates can propose to organise their own independent event or project as part of the festival – including exhibitions, installations, conferences, workshops, guided tours, family activities and more – or they can apply to exhibit within The Venice Glass Week HUB or The Venice Glass Week HUB Under35 (for artists aged 35 or under).

The two HUBs are hosted by the Istituto Veneto di Scienze, Lettere ed Arti in Palazzo Loredan, located in Campo Stefano, in the heart of Venice.

The Venice Glass Week HUB is situated in the magnificent first floor galleries and will feature a series of installations of glass artworks by artists and designers aged 36 and over.

The Venice Glass Week HUB Under35 is situated in the ground floor galleries of Palazzo Loredan and will host a series of glass artworks by artists and designers aged 18-35.

All exhibitors within the HUB Under35 will be considered for the Autonoma Residency Prize, which will enable the winner to undertake a two-month artistic residency at Pilchuck Glass School in Seattle, US, in 2025.

Participation in the festival is free, but participants are responsible for all costs relating to the planning and realisation of their individual events and projects (eg transportation and installation of artworks, insurance, hire of venue if relevant).

HUB exhibitors are responsible for all costs relating to the production of their works, transportation to and from the venue, installation and de-installation, plus insurance of their works while in transit and on-site.

Read the conditions of entry via this link before applying using the online application form, which will be evaluated by the festival’s Curatorial Committee.

The deadline for applications is Monday 8 April 2024.

The Venice Glass Week was established in 2017 to celebrate and promote the art of glass. The festival is promoted by Comune di Venezia and organised by Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia, LE STANZE DEL VETRO – Fondazione Giorgio Cini, Istituto Veneto di Scienze, Lettere ed Arti and Consorzio Promovetro Murano.

For further information, please contact info@theveniceglassweek.com

Join Glass Art Society trip to Mexico

Discover the rich cultural tapestry of Oaxaca in Mexico with the Glass Art Society (GAS) this autumn.

One of Mexico’s most culturally rich regions, Oaxaca is known for its long tradition of producing world-class crafts, mezcal, mole, and chocolate – all of which will be explored during this week-long adventure from 25 September to 2 October 2024.

And to satisfy the more glassy side, the group will visit local studios and explore environmentally friendly practices being pioneered in Oaxaca and enjoy hands-on activities. There will also be a personal tour of the exhibition at Centro Cultural San Pablo during the second Bienal Internacional de Arte en Vidrio de Iberoamérico.

This exclusive adventure is limited to 30 attendees and we are delighted to announce that Contemporary Glass Society members can enjoy GAS member pricing until 1 June 2024.

Prices for GAS and CGS members are: US$3,597 per person double occupancy or US$4,542 per person single occupancy.

Non-members: US$3,957 per person double occupancy or US$4,996 per person single occupancy.

The price includes tour, city travel, hotel, lunches, dinners and all admission fees for planned activities. Airfare is not included.

For booking at member rates, contact Julie Thompson at julie@glassart.org. For more details, visit https://bit.ly/3pq6QES.

22nd International Flameworking Conference in US

From 15-17 March 2024 Salem Community College in the US will host the 22nd International Flameworking Conference (IFC).

This three-day event promotes excellence in flameworking through artist demonstrations and scholarly presentations. The weekend attracts glass artists and enthusiasts from around the US and the world.

In 2024, the conference will continue its core mission of education, the promotion of the techniques and its practitioners.

Featured artist this year is Mathieu Grodet, who is joined by eight demonstrating flameworking practitioners who will show off their skills over the weekend. They are Shayla Windstar Behrman, Ivan Bestari Minar Pradipta, Lilla Tabasso, Paul Stankard, Rocko Belloso, Joy Munshower, Kyle Meyer and Elliott Todd.

The weekend includes a film screening, presentations, demonstrations, exhibits, and seller displays.

On the Friday evening, curator, speaker and advocate for artists, Susie Silbert will present the keynote address, followed by a screening of filmmaker Dan Collins’ latest documentary, entitled ‘Paul Stankard: Flower & Flame’. NB Paul is one of the contributors to the upcoming May 2024 edition of the Contemporary Glass Society’s (CGS) Glass Network print magazine, which is sent to all members of CGS.

Find out more details of the programme and register for the IFC via this link.

Salem Community College’s Glass Education Center is at: 460 Hollywood Avenue, Carneys Point, NJ 08069, US.

Image: Work by Mathieu Grodet, the 2024 Featured Artist at the conference.

New glass collective holds exhibition

An exhibition of kiln-formed glass by 14 makers will be presented in Leicestershire in March.

The show is called ‘Nature in Glass’ and has been organised by the UK Glass Art Collective – a newly formed group of 14 glass artists from around the UK who met while exhibiting in Bristol in 2023.

This first joint show will be held at Coalville C.A.N., opening on Thursday 14 March 2024 and running until Sunday 24 March 2024 (10am to 4pm daily), with free entry.

On 13 March there will be an artist talk at 6pm, plus there will be have-a-go fused glass workshops on offer on 16 and 17 March at 10.30am and 1.30pm with Carla Harris-Marsh. Email carla@harris-marsh.com for details of costs and booking information.

Artists exhibiting include: Rosalind Beattie, Suzanne Bunce, Mandy Capel, Alex Compton, Rachel Craig, Fabio di Gregorio, Rachael Durkan, Jacqueline Erhahon, Claire Fernig, Angela Gunter, Carla Harris-Marsh, Rachel Nuttall, Heather Russell and Katrina Shearlaw.

Coalville C.A.N. is a community enterprise where makers, volunteers and community groups work in partnership for the good of the local community.

Coalville C.A.N. is at Memorial Square, Coalville, Leicestershire, LE67 3TU, UK. Website: www.coalvillecan.coop

Corning’s Studio announces 2024 residencies

The Studio of The Corning Museum of Glass has announced the names of its 12 residency recipients for 2024.

The programmes include Artists-in-Residence; the Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC) Residency; the Instructor Collaborative Residency; the Burke Residency; the David Whitehouse Research Residency for Artists, plus the David Whitehouse Research Residency for Scholars.

The five-week-long Studio residencies aim to empower artists to explore new directions in their work. The research residencies have been awarded to artists and scholars to provide time and resources for in-depth, scholarly research using the collections of The Rakow Research Library and the Museum, plus access to expert staff.

The Studio of The Corning Museum of Glass, in partnership with The Museum of Art and Design (MAD), introduced the biennial Burke Residency in 2020. This residency enables one non-glass artist from the Burke Prize exhibition at MAD to use the glassmaking facilities and resources at The Studio to further their artistic exploration. Santa Fe-based multi-media artist Brie Ruais will undertake the 2024 Burke Residency from 18 November to 13 December.

Residents will benefit from use of the new Wendell Weeks & Kim Frock Residency Center, which is part of a major facility and programme expansion set for completion in late 2024. The Residency Center features seven fully equipped studios surrounding a light-filled lounge.

2024 Residency recipients are:

Alli Hoag (Ohio, US)
David Whitehouse Research Residency for Artists
18-29 March 2024
Alli Hoag is a Toledo-based artist and researcher who works across the mediums of glass, installation, video, performance, and digital technology. She plans to investigate the Rakow Research Library’s extensive collection of Blaschka notebooks and explore the Museum’s Blaschka glass specimens to find source material for transforming microscopic two-dimensional images and surfaces into three-dimensional forms.

Birgit Maixner (Trondheim, Norway)
David Whitehouse Research Residency for Scholars
8-26 April 2024
Birgit Maixner is an archaeologist who specialises in the Northern European Viking Age and material culture of that era. She will use the Rakow Research Library and the Museum’s collections and exhibitions to further her research into Viking-period Middle Eastern mosaic glass beads.

Joe Stadolnik (Illinois, US)
David Whitehouse Research Residency for Scholars
17-28 June 2024
Joe Stadolnik studies medieval English literature and its interaction with natural sciences like astronomy, medicine and alchemy. He will research into two medieval manuscript books in the Rakow Research Library, which combine alchemical reading material with more practical glassmaking texts.

Fatma Çiftçi (Bilecik, Turkey)
David Whitehouse Research Residency for Artists
8-19 July 2024
Fatma Çiftçi is a Turkish artist and scholar currently pursuing a PhD in fine arts and glass at Dokuz Eylul University in Izmir, Turkey. She will explore The Rakow Research Library’s collection, focusing on the use of lustre-painted glass techniques and tracing the existence of lustre-glass technology in medieval stained glass.

Peadar Lamb (Cork, Ireland) and Debbie Dawson (Cork, Ireland)
Instructor Collaborative Residency
9-20 September 2024
Award-winning Irish glass artists Peadar Lamb and Debbie Dawson will work together to explore different methodologies for working with glass. They plan to combine traditional stained glass painting techniques with contemporary processes, firing photographic transfers on to a range of coloured and float glass as they explore historic themes including the connection between Irish people and the Native American Choctaw Nation.

Catie Newell (Michigan, US)
Artist-in-Residence
16 September-18 October 2024
Trained as an architect and fabricator, Catie Newell will focus on developing a series of kiln castings, relying on geometry, thickness and colour to emphasise the difference between light transmittance and absorption, drawing inspiration from the Museum’s collection and The Rakow Research Library.

Ross A Delano (New York, US)
Artist-in-Residence
23 September-25 October 2024
Corning-based artist Ross Delano has been a glassmaker and instructor at The Studio for more than a decade. He will use The Studio’s resources to create handmade glass lighting based on his love of the sky, aviation and space.

Percy Echols II (Pennsylvania, US)
Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC) Residency
23 September-25 October 2024
Percy Echols II is a Pittsburgh-based artist, alchemist, and educator at the Pittsburgh Glass Center. He is also the creator and host of the podcast Taming Lightning, a series of conversations exploring plasma and neon light, the focus of his work. During his residency, he proposes to extend his practice using the hot shop for glassblowing, layering colours, fire polishing and assembly; the cold shop for engraving and finishing,
and the kiln room for electrode fusing and complicated assembly. He will be among the first visiting artists to work in The Studio’s new Neon Shop.

Jason MacDonald (California, US)
Artist-in-Residence
28 October–29 November 2024
Jason McDonald has a passion for historical Venetian glassmaking and uses these techniques to speak about the barriers that BIPOC people face in accessing creative spaces. During his 2024 residency he will develop a new body of work that combines glassblowing, pattern-making, fusing, coldworking and hot-casting to create inclusions.

Runa Kosogawa (Takayama, Japan)
Artist-in-Residence
28 October-29 November 2024
Runa Kosogawa is a Japanese artist whose work is inspired by the small things and events she observes in everyday life, which are easily taken for granted. During her residency she will continue her work creating monochromatic black flowers to direct attention to the lives of people who have been neglected by history. She will also extend her Weaving Life Project 2021 by blowing a series of 40 glass balloons of Pyrex glass, each engraved with the date and place of their creation and suspended by hand-dyed silk threads made with local wild plants.

The Corning Museum of Glass is at One Museum Way, Corning, NY 14830, US. Website: https://home.cmog.org

Image: The new lounge facilities at the Wendell Weeks & Kim Frock Residency Center.

British Glass Biennale 2024 deadline extended

Remember that applications are now open for the last British Glass Biennale to be organised by the Ruskin Mill Land Trust at The Glasshouse in Stourbridge, before the Glass Art Society takes over for the 2026 event.

The deadline has been extended to midnight on 3 March 2024.

The British Glass Biennale is the foremost juried exhibition of excellence in contemporary glass by artists, designers and craftspeople working in the UK and British artists working abroad. It is the flagship exhibition within the International Festival of Glass.

The British Glass Biennale 2024 is open to artists, designers, craftspeople and students working in all areas of contemporary glass practice or using glass as a key design element. The emphasis is on new work demonstrating the highest level of excellence in design, creative imagination and technical skill.

Applicants must:

  • have been living and working in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland for the last two consecutive years; or
  • be living, working or studying abroad but possess a British passport and have previously lived in the UK for a minimum of 15 years; or
  • be studying on glass arts course in the UK.

Each artist can submit up to three pieces for consideration. Each piece must be predominantly made of glass but can incorporate other materials. The work must have been made since 1 March 2022 and all work selected for display must be for sale. A range of prizes will be awarded.

Prizes:

British Glass Biennale Award for Best in Show

Glass Sellers’ Arts and Crafts Awards – Main and Runner Up

Glass Sellers’ Student Awards – Main and Runner Up

NEW: Bullseye Living Edge Award

The Glass Arts Society International Artists’ Prize

NEW: Glass Painters and Glaziers Award

The Guild of Glass Engravers Award

People’s Prize sponsored by Warm Glass

Young Collectors’ Award sponsored by The Glass Sellers.

The application fee is £15 (or £10 for a student).

The jury comprises: Martin Donlin (architectural glass artist); Candice-Elena Greer (chair)  (curator); Nadania Idriss (vice chair of the Glass Art Society and chair of Berlin Glas e.V.); Annie Warburton (writer and specialist in craft and design, CEO at Cockpit Arts); Tanya Raabe-Webber (artist, consultant, mentor), and Matt Durran (curator).

The British Glass Biennale opens on 23 August 2024 and closes on 28 September 2024.

Address: British Glass Biennale, The Glasshouse, Wollaston Road, Amblecote, Stourbridge, West Midlands DY8 4HF.

Submit your application via this link.

Find out more via the website: https://www.glassbiennale.org

Last chance to apply for Enchanted Garden outdoor show

Artists are invited to submit their proposals on the theme of ‘Water and Fire’ to participate in the international sculpture event ‘The Enchanted Garden 2024’, held in Jodoigne, Belgium. The outdoor exhibition and sale of work integrates sculptures with other artistic expressions, such as poetry, music, dance and theatre.

A book of poems with photographs of the sculptures will form the event catalogue.

During the summer of 2024, ‘The Enchanted Garden’ will take place for the eleventh time in a structured, natural sculpture garden, promising water, contrasts and surprises galore.

The venue is located in Belgium, on the language border between Jodoigne, Hoegaarden and Tienen; halfway between Brussels, Liège and Namur and on the ‘RAVEL’ cycle path connecting Leuven, Tienen, Hoegaarden, Jodoigne and Namur.

More details are available on the website.

For more information phone +32 (0) 493. 628 540.

Photos of proposed sculptures or proposals on collaborations should be sent to the organiser Ignace Clarysse by email to:  info@ignace-clarysse.com

Submission deadline is Monday 19 February 2024.

Image: Detail of ‘Seeing red’ (stained glass and metal) by Amber Hiscott, from the 2023 event.

Work placement opportunities in stained glass

The Worshipful Company of Glaziers and Painters of Glass has announced two awards that will provide successful applicants with work placements in stained glass studios of national or international repute.

The Lever Award 2024 provides a 30-week placement and pays a total of £11,550 (or £385 per week). There is also a training fund of £1,000.

This award is open to a recent graduate, a promising trainee, or other individual interested in broadening his or her experience in stained glass, with a view to making a career in this field. It is open to those interested in becoming a stained glass conservator or stained glass artist. Students and practitioners from other conservation/arts disciplines are invited to apply. Applications are invited from individuals within five years of completion of their initial training in/introduction to the craft.

The Ashton Hill Award 2024 is a 15-week placement and pays a total of £5,775 (£385 per week), plus there is a training fund of £750. This award is also open to a recent graduate, a promising trainee, or other individual interested in broadening his or her experience in stained glass, with a view to making a career in this field. It is open to those interested in becoming a stained glass conservator or stained glass artist. Students and practitioners from other conservation/arts disciplines are invited to apply. Applications are invited from individuals within five years of completion of their initial training in/introduction to the craft.

All candidates must be resident or employed in the UK. Applicants may apply for both awards.

The application deadline for both awards is noon on 27 March 2024, with interviews on 17 May 2024.

Further details and information on how to apply via this link.

Waxing lyrical

Anja Isphording relocated her contemporary glass practice from Germany to Canada when she moved in 2000. She is a respected lost wax kiln caster whose work has been exhibited internationally. Linda Banks finds out more.

You are known for your impressive cast glass sculptures. What led you to start working with glass?

After high school I had to decide what to do next. I knew I wanted and needed to do something with my hands, but didn’t quite know in which direction to go.

We had a little, engraved antique glass in the china cabinet that we inherited from my grandmother and I thought that was just so intriguing! It turned out that glass engraver was actually a real occupation (I had never heard of it) and I started an apprenticeship at Glasfachschule Zwiesel in 1983.

 

‘#167’ (2018). Photo: Raymond Lum.

What glass techniques have you used and which do you prefer?

I started with the three-year apprenticeship in engraving and also used enamels on my glass for the first few years. I also took classes in glassblowing, hot sculpting, stained glass, sandblasting and flameworking.

When I started kiln casting with the lost wax method, I knew that this was the right technique for me; I prefer the slow process of working on a wax model and the deliberate decision-making along the way. In addition, I seem to like working on my own. I do love coldworking and all my cast pieces are extensively cut, engraved and polished.

Excavation process showing the glass emerging from the mould. Photo: Anja Isphording.

What is your creative approach? Do you draw your ideas out or dive straight in with the materials?

I used to draw out my ideas first, but these days I start with the warm wax straight away, maybe doing a drawing along the way. Often, I start with a certain idea and then completely change my mind while I’m working on the model, as the piece develops.

This wax model shows the intricate details of Anja’s cast sculptures.

What is your favourite tool or piece of equipment and why?

My trusty old Merker engraving lathe is my favourite piece of equipment. It accompanied me from Bavaria to Helminghausen to Vancouver over the course of 40 years and it still works great, even though I don’t treat it very nicely.

‘#179’ was completed in 2021. Photo: Mark Whitehead.

Where do you show and sell your work?

Heller Gallery in New York has represented my art for over 20 years.

‘#193’ is a recent piece, produced in 2023. Photo: John Watson.

What advice would you give to someone starting out on a creative career?

You have to be patient and prepared to be in it for the long haul. Apply as often as possible to competitions and exhibitions with professional images. Also use those images on social media.

‘#153’ (2014). Photo: Raymond Lum.

Do you have a career highlight? What has helped your career?

My scholarship at the Creative Glass Centre of America, Wheaton Village, was very important because, during my stay in 1995, I finally figured out how to successfully cast glass in the lost wax technique. I had access to optical glass and it worked beautifully!

I’d also like to highlight how crucial it was for my career that Heller Gallery in New York added me to their artist’s roster and I’m grateful for their support and consistency.

‘#187’ was made in 2022. Photo: John Watson.

About the artist

Anja Isphording with a wax model. Photo credit: Anja Isphording.

Following her apprenticeship in glass engraving, Anja Isphording studied glass design at Fachschule Zwiesel, Germany, from 1986-1988.

She set up her own studio in Helminghausen, Germany, which she ran between 1988 and 2000, subsequently moving to Vancouver, Canada, where she established a new studio.

During her time in Germany, she won scholarships to the Academy of Applied Arts, Prague, Czech Republic (1993), the Creative Glass Center of America, Wheaton Village, NJ, US (1995)

Pilchuck Glass School, WA, US, (1998-2001).

She has exhibited internationally.

Find out more about Anja and her work via her website: https://www.anjaisphording.com

Main feature image: ‘#145’ (2012) comprises kiln-cast glass made using the lost wax technique and multiple castings. Photo: Raymond Lum.