Congratulations to these eight competition finalists; chosen by a pre-selection panel of judges who assessed entries with particular regard to;
craftsmanship and skill,
concept and aesthetics, and
alignment of artist statement and work.
These works will comprise the finalist exhibition 2-7 February, 2023, to be held in conjunction with the the ‘Futures Past’ Ausglass conference in Melbourne.
The optical qualities of glass have been captured through the use of a thick clear glass form, creating the illusion of space. The suspension of the bubble emphasises the reflection and refraction of light between the exterior and interior surface, whilst the delicate imagery engraved on the outside surface both describes and captures the beauty of nature.
Many of the designs of nature I have used in this series of work, have been found whilst exploring the property where I live. Surrounded by towering trees and forest groves, I love finding the smallest details and patterns in the leaves scattered on the ground, or the patterns and details on the stems of plants or trunks of trees.
This particular piece, titled 'Optical Landscape Reed’, has been inspired by the patterns of the grasses surrounding our dam and is reminiscent of the patterns formed when using these grasses to weave baskets and containers.
The work: Optical Landscape Reed
16 x 14 x 16cm: hot blown glass
Images: Michal Kluvanek & Nicole Ayliffe
This work sits quietly, as it would outside of the back door in late autumn, gathering fallen leaves and gently weathering as the cold sets in.
A Quiet Afternoon in May .
I am interested in our relationship with domestic objects, and how these easily identifiable forms can bring with them associations of a specific place, time or a person, which, when given more than just a passing glance, has the ability to reveal a deep-rooted connection far beyond their utilitarian function.
My nostalgic interest in these objects and the memories they hold, stems from their history of use and the hands that held them while also extending to their decay and the passing of time around them. By recreating in glass, both the organic and inorganic elements in this work, I am able to preserve them while celebrating a moment in time.
The work: A Quiet Afternoon in May
100 x 100 x 45cm; blown, hot-sculpted, enameled, flame-worked, cold-worked and rusted glass.
Images: Adam McGrath (images 1. 3. and 4.) Brenton McGeachie (image 2.).
My works capture, modulate and grade the available light through the arrangement of layered glass fragments. Wall-mounted assemblages layer translucent colour and opaque white glass, reorganising the light they absorb. The use of fragments combined with shifting colours suggest the subtle changes we experience through daily life. Crepe is made up of small tiles arranged to form the large plane. The abstract patterns play with repetition and disruption through the placement of tiles in shifting tones of white and orange. The varying intensity, brightness and opacity of the whites over the more muted tones of orange, result in an illusion of depth and movement. The still, hard object is a dynamic plane, the smaller components seeming to slide back and forth over each other in a constant shuffle.
The work: Crepe
84 x 49 x 1 cm: Kiln-formed glass
Images: Rob Little & Hannah Gason
e: lee@leehowesglass.com.au
w: leehowesglass.com.au
The work: CONNECT
50 X 15 X 40 cm: cast glass components from 3D prints.
Images: Lee Howes
Inspired by the majestic Morten Bay Fig which, in the process of thriving, becomes the doom of its host tree. The Morten Bay Fig begins its life as seeds rained down from above by unwitting birds, often dropping harmlessly to the forest floor only to die of exposure. However, a single seed, finding a fertile crevice within the canopy of a host tree, germinates and grows into the enveloping embrace of a living cage. The tree within perishes but the strangling vine lives on with blue sky peeking between each twisting branch.
e: jessica.murtagh@hotmail.com
The work: Strangle Vine
42 x 27 x 21 cm: blown glass, sandblasted and engraved.
Images: Jesse Reagon
Not for sale
My name is Peter Nilsson. I’m a Swedish Australian living in Canberra and since 2010 have worked as an artist at Canberra Glassworks. In my 30+ year studio glass practice, I’ve worked in a range of different sub-medias in glass, both in Sweden and Australia.
I love working with recycled glass. It is rewarding to give a material a new life and function. I often work with laminated glass sculptures with enclosed engravings, as well as with kiln-formed glass.
Glass is the perfect medium for figurative art. A material that’s almost invisible is better that a blank canvas. I like to create a dialogue between the shape and the picture. A glass sculpture can be looked at, into and through.
My thoughts circles around, the human within nature and nature within humans, the fluid boundaries in our relationship with nature and how fragile our place in the world can be. It’s easy for me to fall back on the Scandinavian folklore tradition in my works. The folklore is there to describe how we should behave in the world. It never stops surprising me how we humans manage to intellectualise our primitive urges and behaviours.
My sculpture Beck Horse represents a Scandinavian water spirit who wants to be close to and play with human, but in the action drowns them. Maybe most people and creatures who do bad things, do them because they are lonely and want to put things right; sometimes in a very twisted way.
The work: Beck Horse
12 x 35 x 30cm: kiln-cast lead crystal. Hand-carved, recycled, laminated floatglass with enclosed engraving.
Images: Dr Tim Brook.
Artist must keep their eyes open, to see the reality, then they can decide to depict or interpret this reality, or, to express their digested, internalized, abstracted feelings about it. Then the created artwork unmistakably carries the original message, appeals to a viewer (who can recognize it...)
How I feel about reality these days? A mixture of recent natural disasters, horrifying bushfires, global warming, global pandemic and and most recently, a horrible war. Everything red…
So, here it is. A result of my eyes kept open. Rage. Expressed with unapologetic raw emotions.
Then the other part of (my) artist’s soul feels a need to offer hope, to keep the balance. Help comes from (still present, but recently becoming slightly dysfunctional) natural order – a cycle of Revival.
Moving in!
To repair the destruction caused by Rage.
Hence the inseparable duality of contrasting objects, Rage and Revival, suggesting a necessity of keeping balance in the nature.
A search for a more delicate technique to better describe fragility of Nature via fragility of glass
led to developing my own new methods within pâte de verre technique.
Unusual objects created by using (my own version of) this versatile method were promptly noticed (first overseas), which led to my works being included, along with twenty international glass artists, into a new
book on pâte de verre.
The work: Rage #6 & Revival #8, pâte de verre duo.
16 x 63 x 16 & 15 x 62 x 15 cm: pâte de verre constructed objects. Bullseye glass.
Images: Emma Varga
Childhood nostalgia is very powerful, especially when you're a kid of the 90's. Free-to-air TV was still relevant and advertising jingles were incredibly catchy. In the Young family, Vegemite on toast certainly was enjoyed for breakfast, lunch and tea. I find myself leaning on fond past memories during times of difficulty, and haven't the past few years been testing?! This artwork reflects my childhood with its many different stages, all bright and happy. A combination of blown vessel and sculpture, 'Jar of Nostalgia' is sure to put a rose in every cheek.
Emma Young is South Australian born & bred, often making local references in her glass artwork. Working out of the JamFactory glass studio, Emma enjoys exploring different techniques with each new developing work. Themes often involve nostalgia, pride in local icons, and personal childhood memories.
The work: Jar of Nostalgia
18 x 25 x 18 cm: coloured glass tubes were blown, annealed, sawed, ground, polished and stacked in a kiln. Picked up hot from the kiln and blow into large cylinder. Yellow 'lid' is blown, hot sculpted and cold worked.
Images: Michael Haines
