Honoring a Friend . . .

I recently learned of the passing of a colleague – Laurel Clark Fyfe.  Laurel was the founder and Principal of Fox Fire Glass in Pontiac, MI.  I first met Laurel in 1987 during a Michigan Glass Guild event in which she was instructing us on the technique of ultra-violet bonded glass.  Laurel started her career with stained glass and then moved toward kiln formed glass on a large scale starting with prototype windshields for the automotive industry, which her company still does today. 

They say imitation is the finest form of flattery . . . Laurel was the front runner of ultra-violet bonded furniture products which caught on internationally so that it became almost common, yet none of Laurel’s work would fall into the “common” category. 

She moved on to create large scale kiln formed furniture which is breathtaking in its movement and design.  She and her team spent countless hours experimenting with metals, pigments, types of glass most notably starfire glass which is virtually clear in tint versus the green of the standard soda-lime based commercial glass. 

Laurel completed countless commission works and was awarded the glass commission for the renovated McNamara Terminal at Detroit Metropolitan airport connecting concourse A to B&C via an underground corridoor.  She sandcarved elegant designs into curved glass and then added the drama of colored lighting.  An original music score was written for the installation. 

Her latest endeavors included colored lamination of glass and surface metal bonding onto sandblasted glass.  NO ONE is even coming close to duplicating her kiln formed glass or metal bonding.  Laurel was a visionary and pioneer in the glass industry.  She dedicated her life to excellence of her techniques and design which were ever changing, ever expanding, ever exploring . . . as is the custom of a committed artist and artisan.

The glass world and public alike has indeed suffered a great loss.  To date I know of none currently exploring and testing the limits of glass in the way that Laurel has.  There are a few of her decorative and architectural pieces remaining – if you would like more information on them please contact Fox Fire Glass and I urge you to visit their website so you may experience a glimpse of the legacy of beauty and talent  that  Laurel has shared with us  . . .

Springing into action . . .

The seeds planted in the fall, after a long winter’s sleep are now stirring . . . . physically and metaphorically.   March is a month of anticipation and creation for me.   Last year I was inspired to create “Kohaku!” – the 2010 art prize project.   This spring my creativity is flowing with smaller scale gallery items like the “little table coffee book” and gift items for entertaining in style.   I will also publish a large coffee table book of my studio work for the past 20+ years.

My primary focus for this year is to come off my creative sabbatical and re-launch my studio – it is what I was born to do . . . however this phase of my creative development is spurring me to delve deeper in to my interior to birth work that will reach and impact more people.   How this will manifest is still unclear to me but I feel it stirring.

As a creative, I “see”, “feel”, interpret and respond differently to this world of ours and it is often misunderstood leaving me to feel estranged at times, the proverbial round peg in a square hole.   The challenge for me always has been the struggle to “fit in” with the world around me.   But I already do.   I have a unique place in the grand scheme of things as do we all.   My gifts of sensitivity, understanding and the ability to find beauty and awe in the world around me excite me and compel me to interpret and share it, as I feel it, with mediums that seem unrelated or incongruous.   THAT is the challenge I just absolutely LOVE.

The ability to interpret naturally occurring events, objects and experiences into artistic expression which conveys the essence of a thing without being that exact thing or a direct representation of it.   And it does not need to be complicated. My tendency is toward minimalism.   This is quite evident in my contemporary religious work.   With simple flowing lines and seemingly minimal imagery, I can convey numerous concepts and metaphors intertwined, overlapping, and merging with each other.   My hope is that the movement and messages within the piece will resonate deeply, on a core level, with the viewer so they will receive and understand on a level which may not be conscious for them but will, somehow, reach that inner place of Grace we all KNOW.   Art and artists are asking the viewer to “feel” first, rationalize later . . .

“Give Thanks, Sing Praise, Declare God’s Steadfast Love” (Psalm 92: 1-2) was the 1995 Stewardship theme for the Presbyterian headquarters in Kentucky.   First, I invite you to “feel” the piece, then I will offer explanation.

"Give Thanks, Sing Praise, Declare God's Steadfast Love"

At first glance, the color is the most striking aspect of this piece.   In actuality, the majority of this panel is clear textured glass.   The color stems from pieces of dichroic glass mounted perpendicular to the panel itself leaving them almost invisible.   The message here is that the Divine fills our lives with rich beauty and dimension and yet remains unseen or intangible; that same light also stems from inside of us to the world.   The central image is triune (the trinity): a Nautilus – symbol of eternity; a Cornucopia (give thanks) – symbol of abundance and bounty ( both of which are promises to us from God); and a Ram’s horn (declare God’s love) – which was used as a call to worship back in the day.   The bottom section of the panel, under the main image, are geometric, bevelled shapes which actually represent musical notes (sing praise) as the first music was composed of “shape notes” and these shapes are the actual notes of the hymn verse of the stewardship theme.

Inspiration is the voice of the divine. We all hear it but do not always act on it.   This is the “rush” that I hope all of us experience many times over in our lives.   When I act on my inspiration, be it in the form of art or a daily activity, I am filled with joy and excitement and that energy is transferred into the work or activity ultimately making it a success regardless of the outcome.   At that moment, we are in sync with our truth.

Art Prize Conclusions

As a first time Art Prize visitor and Artist, my overall impression of the event is one of awe, inspiration and accolade.  No where else in this country can one see so much art with so much diversity – there is something for everyone to appreciate and dialogue about. 

I agree the major downtown venues are the main attraction sites, however, as a venue, I believe it is important for them to have the ability to curate and select their entries as they are part of the art-ucation process.  In my opinion, one of the important goals of Art Prize is to expose and educate the public on the arts as many people have expressed to me that they do not get much critical art education in the public system.

I would suggest a separate directory of the artists and work with descriptions not only by the artists but by the curators as well.  I do not believe that many of the voters/attendees spent a great deal of time on the art prize website really learning about the works they were viewing. 
The PROCESS of the artwork is just as critical as the finished piece.

My partner (who is formally art trained) and I (who am self taught) have both been self employed in the arts for over 20 years.  Our experiences with both commissioned work and public art fairs have afforded us some sensitivity on how art is viewed and appreciated by the public. As an example, my partner was exhibiting his work at a juried art fair, an attendee entered his booth, viewed his work, an upon exit said to the artist “why bother . . .” Understand, this artist, Scott Brazeau,  has an MFA from Cranbrook, a very well reputed institution. 

Most Americans have a “bigger is better” mentality.  I blame our media, in part, for that.  Humans also have a great tendency toward drama.  That being said, it was no surprise to us that the 3 criteria we observed to be the key factors with the voters were: size, complexity and message.

Art Prize hosts some brilliant talent.  Some of it, I will agree, was not seen or appreciated for what it REALLY was – a process, a communication, a thought, feeling or idea.  Art has many purposes and forms and ultimately is a catalog of our cultural evolution.

KOHAKU! LIVES . . .

The act of creating and bringing to form an idea is magical for me. Kohaku! Started as an idea, then became a pencil sketch on a post it note, then a colored drawing on an 8 ½” x 11” piece of paper. Now it is a 12’ high by 6’ wide and deep three dimensional form. A living, breathing, metal and glass construct born . . .

I typically work solo, so the addition of another’s energy, input, insight and own creativity adds even more magic and dimension to this project. Scott Brazeau has done an amazing job on constructing the frame and the base with his hands, head, heart and talent. Sculpting flat steel into curvaceous 3 dimensions – wow!

This piece is coming together smoothly and on deadline – that in and of itself is miraculous! We put forth much effort in the planning of this project so its execution has been very smooth. Thanks to Gary Brazeau, our engineering talent, for keeping us 2 artist types grounded! And thanks to my son Maverick for steering us in the right direction as to the base . . .

Because of the temporary nature of this installation, and the public liability issues involved, we solicited the expertise of a structural engineer  to calculate the necessities of the base to ensure its stability.  The base itself  is a 6′ diameter steel lily pad (275#) that must be weighted with 1000# of aggregate to account for 540# of torc.  Upon permanent installation, we would contract a backhoe and have a 4′ deep by 3′ square pad of concrete to secure the piece.

 

The glass scales are affixed with magnets so we can remove them for transport.  Each magnet is rated at 24# of pull and I must say, when 50 of these magnets stick together, they are a force to be reckoned with so I will have to separate each scale with 1/2″ cardboard to keep the magnets apart or the glass will definitely break.  At the completion of this project, we will have moved this piece 4x! close to 600 miles.

The excitement is mounting all over for this year’s Art Prize competition. Last I heard there are artists from 22 countries participating. The DeVos center is now putting on a 2 day art fair/sale for the artists to promote more of their work and make some extra $$ to cover their expenses. Ann Mudel’s newsletter informed my small community about the project and more press will be on the way.

Art Prize is now offering a Meet the Artist’s Brunch – ticket sales and info: http://www.artprize.org – Scott and I will be there so please say hello if you attend. Also, the opening at Grand Valley State promises to be spectacular as the arts department has created performance art for each of the sculptures it is hosting – http://www.GVSU.edu.  You can find Kohaku! in area #6 . . .

Thank you all for your support thus far and we look forward to you celebrating with us this Fall at Grand Rapids Art Prize.

Kohaku = Art Prize collaboration!

I am very excited to announce a collabortive effort with myself – Julie McDonough, BA, APW – glass and Scott Brazeau, MFA Cranbrook – metal on a large 3-D sculpture entitled Kohaku which is the first type of decorative Koi fish bred in Japan in the 19 century.  Our mission at this point is to secure a venue w/in the Art Prize boundaries and begin fabrication for the 9-22-2010 deadline.  Scott and I have worked together on commissions in the past, notably the Forte’ Restaurant in Birmingham, MI and while working for profit is desirable, we have decided to create something for FUN (and hopefully profit!)!

In Japanese, ‘koi’ is a homophone for another word that means ‘affection or love’; koi are therefore symbols of love and friendship in Japan. An example of this is given in a short story by Mukoda Kuniko, “Koi-san”.  Markus Katsuo sums up the story like this:

“The Koi fish is pure will – The act of swimming upstream shows the will of the koi and that the current is no challenge for the resistance that it feels as it swims upstream. Will could also be interpreted as desire , a great master once said that a strong wish was the most powerful force in the universe. So the Koi tattoo can be a symbol of our strength and will in the world and spirit to move forward no matter what.

The Japanese Koi fish, or “colorful carp”, are ornamental domesticated varieties of the common carp. . . . In many of the Japanese and Chinese stories, Koi are transformed through their efforts and perseverance, able to climb waterfalls or become dragons. The Koi is a symbol that represents perseverance in the face of adversity and strength of character or purpose. The Carp can also represent wisdom, knowledge, longevity, and loyalty.”

 Kohaku will be approximately 9′ x 4′ with additional dimensions depending on the mounting w/in the venue.  The vividly colored art glass scales forming the outer structure are supported by an inner steel frame that will also house UV photo luminescent “pucks” for a night time “glow” and interest.  As Kohaku will have to be assembled on-site, the scales will be affixed with magnets. 

The Art Prize competition is unique in that the prizes are awarded by popular vote.  There are 210 venues and the competition is open to artists on an international scale.  I will be posting updates and photos as the piece is being constructed and hope that you all will follow our progress and journey and ultimately celebrate with us by voting!