Exhibitions!
The world of art exhibitions is new and unfamiliar to me, but if you are looking to buy stained glass, an exhibition would be a great place to start! I was pleased to exhibit my stained glass Amanda Gorman at the Craft Centre and Design Gallery in Leeds earlier this year as part of the Contemporary Glass Society’s Joy of Glass exhibition. This was my first in-person exhibit, and my partner and my mum endured the 5 hour journey from Edinburgh with me to deliver to and view the exhibition.
“Razzle Dazzle 5 x 5” at the Pyramid Gallery, York
The Pyramid Gallery is showing some fantastic pieces by glass artists in an exhibition called “Bedazzled”, showing the best of modern glass art. Alongside it is displaying some glass pieces that are all 5″ by 5″ in size and all between £100 and £300. You can watch a virtual tour here (opens in new tab) https://youtu.be/AAl25McjU0w The theme was entertainment and my piece is a tribute to the Abba Voyage show that opened in London recently. I’ve called it “Abba: Voyage into Glass”:-
Stories – Whispers from the Past and Present on tour
The Contemporary Glass Society, the Scottish Glass Society and the Glass Society of Ireland have opened a joint exhibition at the Trades House of Glasgow. This will be open from 14th to 22nd September and it will then travel to the Wasps Creative Academy in Inverness from 4th to 29th October 2022. It must be fate… my dad’s family is from Glasgow and my mum went to school where the Wasps Creative Academy now stands!
“What you see today is an array of exemplary exhibits from 50 artists that show the diversity of contemporary glass in all its glory” (Catherine Lowe, Chair of the Scottish Glass Society and Sue Purser-Hope, Chair of the Contemporary Glass Society)
The theme for the exhibition is inspired by Scotland’s 2022 Year of Stories. Two of my stained glass pieces have been selected – Katherine Casse – Witch? and Issobell Fergussonne – Witch? These women were tried as witches in the 1600s, based on questionable ‘evidence’. Their portraits have been painted on the outside of the library in Dalkeith, which was known as “a town where all witches were burnt”. This inspired my ‘witches’ who are both on display and for sale. Read about Scotland’s formal apology to the women and men accused of witchcraft https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-60667533
The exhibition also features the Keep Well Glass Quilt Project, a collaboration between 50 glass artists from Northern Ireland – well worth a look!
I’m going to be stewarding at the exhibition next week, so I’m looking forward to seeing all of the pieces on display. Glass is surprisingly difficult to photograph so it’s always worth seeing it in person if you can.
Karen