art7girl@earthlink.net

Artist's Statement

For the past 15 years I have concentrated on solid, off hand, sculptural glass, experimenting with painted inclusions within multiple layers of glass. Through this exploration I have become fascinated by the optical illusions created by this technique and the challenge of combining the two-dimensional image with a three-dimensional form. The optics of glass create a surrealistic environment in which the paintings seem to move and change when viewed from different angles. I enjoy working with the human form, and the information expressed by gestural qualities and movements. Beginning with the black silhouette and a simple round form, I experimented with how the paintings interacted in the space of the glass. Over the years the forms have evolved to create specific environments while trying to capture more subtle gestures, introducing color and detail along the way. I want to create a world with many perspectives; a painting that can be seen from many points of view. As I paint, I am constantly turning the piece to see how the images on each layer interact with one and other and determining how they will fit into the final shape of the piece. Often the outer forms have taken an architectural format and the outside is coldworked to create voyeuristic spaces. Others have taken the form of large lenses offering a more open view while playing with the inherent qualities of the lens to enlarge and distort the paintings as one moves around the sculpture. The imagery in combination with final form's effects on that imagery continues to inspire my investigation. Technically, it has proven to be a challenging pursuit combining these ideas. Each work begins with a small gather of hot glass from the furnace which is then shaped with traditional glassblowing tools and cooled down slowly in an annealing oven over night to relieve the stress in the glass. When the glass has cooled to room temperature, it is ready to be painted. The color is applied to the glass in layers in order to present more than one view of the subject. For instance; first laying down the facial features, and after allowing the paint to dry adding in the flesh tone, and yet another layer for hair. One can think of it as a combination of reverse and positive painting techniques. The end result of this process makes it possible to see both the back and the front of the subject as one moves around the sculpture. The glass is also applied in layers. After the first set of images have been applied, the glass is returned to the annealing oven and slowly brought back up to a workable temperature. It is then picked up on the end of a blowpipe and a fresh gather of hot glass is applied and shaped carefully so as not to distort the images. The piece is then cooled to room temperature once again in the annealing oven. It is then painted again. Each piece involves multiple layerings of paintings and glass by repeating the process. All this heating and cooling creates a tremendous amount of stress on the glass. With each successive layer the piece must spend more and more time in the reheating, shaping, and cooling processes. The larger it grows the greater the risk is increased for a loss of several months of work. In the end an average work will have been picked up 6 times for a fresh gather of glass and will have spent more than 400 hours in the oven over the course of its completion. Once the piece is cooled for the final time at least a third of the glass is cut from the bottom with a large diamond saw . In many cases the glass is then masked off and sandblasted or carved, to create intricate details on the outer layer or carve out landscapes from underneath. The most recent body of work concentrates on pushing the parameters of the final form of the glass. Using childhood inspirations of nursery rhymes and toys from my earliest memories I explore the more sculptural aspects of the medium. I enjoy the idea of creating a painting which can be looked at from more than one point of view. With each turn one discovers a different aspect of the picture. It reminds me that there is always more than one way to look at life. The process is a journey for me as I discover and incorporate the images within the medium of glass.

Artist's Bio

"I enjoy the idea of creating a painting which can be looked at from more than one point of view. I want to create a world with many perspectives; a painting that can be seen from many angles. With each turn, one discovers a different aspect of the picture. This reminds me that there is always more than one way to look at life." Alison began working in glass in 1991 at a small glass school in her hometown of Cincinnati Ohio. She Moved to New York shortly afterwards to pursue her career at the New York Experimental Glass Workshop where she was exposed to the technique of paradise paint inclusion in glass by Fred Kahl. During a class at the Pilchuck Glass School with Fred and Pike Powers, she attempted the first multi-layered piece. This would turn into a decade long exploration of the techniques you see in her work today. Slowly starting with images drawn from her experience as a printmaker; she used black paint and concentrated on the information conveyed by the gestures of the human form in silhouette. ìThe main idea was to use the glass as a way to create a three dimensional space in which the figures could interact.î Over the last 10 years she has been working at Pier Glass in Brooklyn, New York, with Kevin and Mary Ellen Buxton Kutch. ìWorking in a small studio, with good friends, has been an essential situation to the progress of these pieces. I realized early on that the glass had to be exactly the same for each gather or the illusion is destroyed.î During this time she introduced color to her work, as well as various other techniques to explore the idea of combining painting and sculpture. The most recent body of work concentrates on pushing the parameters of the final form of the glass. Using childhood inspirations of nursery rhymes and toys from her earliest memories she explore the more sculptural aspects of the medium while maintaining the use of the painted