glass artists take works to the extreme, commenting on world issues, interests

Chrysler Museum Showcases New Works By Four Contemporary Artists,
Themes Range from Environment to Economy

(Norfolk, VA)—Imagine a world made completely of glass. Now think of one made entirely of recycled glass.

Or what about one that spotlights wealth while reflecting society’s abuses and excesses?

How about a world of glass that lights up the night sky—one so breathtaking that even the most jaded skeptic stops to take notice?

Or one in which new glass dresses echo the classic ideals of beauty through centuries past?

Those are just a few of the things visitors will get a glimpse of when Contemporary Glass Among the Classics opens at the Chrysler Museum of Art on April 26, 2009. The exhibition continues through July 19, 2009.

The Chrysler will feature awe-inspiring glass installations from four contemporary artists: Katherine Gray, Stephen Knapp, Karen LaMonte, and Beth Lipman. The exhibition will present new works from each artist, focusing on each artist’s approach to the versatile material of glass, as they continue to explore centuries-old techniques and themes in art.

“We’ve chosen artists for this exhibition who have something to say,” says Kelly Conway, Curator of Glass at the Chrysler Museum of Art. “They use glass as a means of commenting on their own beliefs and how they see the world. The themes that resonate in their work are very relevant because they elicit a reaction. People will find some part of this exhibition and it will touch them—we hope it will make them more curious about the world and give them a fresh approach to art in the Museum’s permanent collection.”

Gray’s, LaMonte’s, and Lipman’s works will be featured throughout the Chrysler’s galleries alongside objects from the Museum’s collection. Knapp’s artistry will be on display on the building’s exterior at the Museum entrance, as well as in the photography galleries.

Katherine Gray (Canadian/American, b. 1965) Forest Glass (detail), 2008–09 Photo Courtesy of Joshua White

Katherine Gray’s work is exceptionally thought-provoking, often exploring the tension between the traditional craft of glassblowing’s place in our modern world and its negative impact on the environment. Presenting a new installation entitled Forest Glass, Gray will present three glass trees constructed entirely out of pre-existing glasses. It is her contemporary take on the recycling of glass, a material that takes millions of years to decompose. Through this attempt to breathe new life into discarded glasses, Gray also makes an environmental statement, having made a conscious decision to consume as few resources as possible to create new glass art. Her work additionally references the Chrysler’s proximity to Jamestown, where the first glassmaking venture in America occurred 400 years ago. Gray represents the most recent generation of contemporary artists who attempt to engage in a dialogue with the past, and use their art to consider larger economic, social, and political issues.

Karen Lamonte (American, b. 1967) Dress Impression with Train, 2005 Private Collection

Karen LaMonte’s elegant cast glass dresses with their realistic seams, folds, and appliqués are at once complex and ethereal. Exhibiting three full adult female figures and two busts, each is cast from life-sized clothing. Often in LaMonte’s figures, a ghostly impression of a body is present within the clothing. Although the physical body is absent, the humanity within each figure is conveyed through the treatment of clothing and drapery. This is evident in LaMonte’s just-completed Undine, which will first be publicly shown during this exhibition. LaMonte’s full-length figure could not more closely echo the Museum’s famed Undine, Rising from the Fountain by Chauncey Bradley Ives, beside which it will be displayed. LaMonte’s other four pieces will be featured among classical and neoclassical sculptures throughout the Chrysler’s galleries, juxtaposing the treatment of drapery and clothing in fine art, whether executed in marble or glass.

Beth Lipman (American, 1971) Still Life with Metal Pitcher, 2007 Courtesy of Heller Gallery

Beth Lipman creates complex installations of colorless glass, presenting an interpretation of the classic still life. Lipman’s work Material Culture is a tower of hand-blown glass objects that overwhelm a table too small. Laden with symbolism, the abundance of objects suggests that the line between riches and excess, chaos and damage, is transparently thin. Lipman’s work will be placed in tandem with one of the Chrysler’s most luscious still life paintings, Berne-Bellecour’s La Desserte. In the painting we see what remains of an opulent meal after the guests have departed. Much like the painting’s content, the presence of these objects symbolizes the good fortunes of wealth and prosperity, but also their abuse, the misfortunes of waste and decay. In two related works, Lipman repeats these themes, reducing her three-dimensional displays to two dimensions by printing a photograph of them on a sheet of acrylic glass before destroying the art in the images.

Stephen Knapp (American, b. 1964) Risen Blue (detail), 2004 ©Stephen Knapp

Stephen Knapp’s magical lightpaintings are visual feasts. To herald the arrival of Art of Glass 2, the artist will display Heritage Jitter on the exterior entrance of the Museum. This lively work honors Knapp’s in-laws, who met in Norfolk during World War 2 and spent countless evenings dancing the jitterbug—a love story not unlike that of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr., and his wife, Jean. Another of Knapp’s works will light up one of the Museum’s photography galleries. Serenata reflects Knapp’s love of music, in which tones, like his colorful hues, blend to form a harmonious composition. Knapp’s dancing lightpaintings appear magical to the average viewer, but are the byproduct of carefully shaped and mounted pieces of laminated, coated plate glass, illuminated by only two 75-watt halogen bulbs. Up close, visitors can see the contradiction first-hand: a theatrical choreography of color and composition, all as a result of a scientific, energy-efficient refraction and reflection of light.

Contemporary Glass Among the Classics is one of three exhibitions at the Chrysler Museum of Art for Art of Glass 2. This regional cultural partnership between the Chrysler Museum of Art, Virginia Arts Festival, Contemporary Art Center of Virginia, and 21 affiliate groups brings the best in contemporary glass from around the world to Hampton Roads in Spring/Summer 2009. A full range of educational programs, demonstrations, lectures and artist residencies will be offered to bring the objects on view to life for visitors.

Contemporary Glass Among the Classics is supported with a grant from the Art Alliance of Contemporary Glass. Local presentation of all Chrysler Museum exhibitions is made possible through the generous support of Art of Glass 2, The Bunny and Perry Morgan Fund for Special Exhibitions, the National Endowment for the Arts, Arnold and Oriana McKinnon, and Renee and Arthur Diamonstein.

 

Members of the media in need of high-resolution images of the exhibition may contact the Office of Communications at 757.333.6295 or communications@chrysler.org for more information.