As many folks celebrate Thanksgiving this week, I had an impulse to revisit Norman Rockwell’s iconic painting, Freedom From Want—and to consider Rockwell’s use of color.
Lately I’ve been asking myself how far I can go simplifying color and still create a successful piece. Most of my work involves a limited palette, though the specific colors in that palette can vary from project to project. While glass is not paint, it’s interesting to explore from a painterly perspective how restricted a palette one can use in glass and still achieve an effective work of art.
Chapel glass art for Frankfurt Airport by Angelika Weingardt (Photo: Zoey Braun)
Anyone who knows me, or who has been following this blog for any length of time, will be familiar with my interest in creating art glass installations for interfaith chapels and meditation rooms, largely in the realm of health care.
Suspended art glass panels at Lamar Institute of Technology, 2017 (photo: David Block)
Sometimes there is a long delay between the time a piece is completed and when it is professionally photographed. So, I’m pleased to finally share this photo of the suspended art glass panels I created for the Lamar Institute of Technology (LIT) back in 2017.
From A Nomenclature of Colors for Naturalists : And Compendium of Useful Knowledge for Ornithologists by Robert Ridgway, 1886 (via Hyperallergic/Boston Public Library/Wikimedia)
If you’re looking for some fascinating inspiration (or distraction) today, check out this 2016 piece from Hyperallergic about what led to one of the first modern color systems.
The archer “Paris” from the West Pediment of Aphaia Temple in Aigina, ca. 505–500 BC (image via Wikimedia)
When you think back to sculptures from Greek and Roman antiquity that you’ve seen in art history books or museums, you probably think of white marble (or maybe a kind of unremarkable light gray), right? The image above is a prime example.
But did you know most of these sculptures were once painted in vivid colors?
As I noted in a recent post, I recently started a new “Themes and Variations” page on this website, where you can compare other such studies with their final installations. Here is a set of DNA inspired glass art studies developed for the ARIAD Pharmaceuticals complex in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Rendering of Harmonic Grove, by artist Christopher Janney, forthcoming at Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Hospital (image via WAFB9)
Anyone familiar with my work knows that I create installations for hospitals and other healthcare-related facilities; so I’m always interested to follow what other artists are doing in these settings. Recently, I was particularly intrigued to learn about this colorful art installation by the Massachusetts-based artist Christopher Janney, which is slated to open this fall at Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Hospital in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Art glass studies for 101 North Tryon St. in Charlotte, NC
For another installment of “Themes and Variations,” above are some art glass studies developed for one of my recent projects, a colorful glass facade for the main entrance of 101 North Tryon St. in Charlotte’s City Center.
Detail of glass sample utilizing new art glass techniques
Believe it or not, that image above is not computer-generated; it’s an actual glass sample, showcasing one result of some new art glass techniques that I’ve been exploring!