작품 상세

Joel Philip Myers American, b. 1934 Contiguous Fragment series vessel, 1979 blown glass A gorgeous, early example of a Contiguous Fragment series vessel, with abstract patterns executed in black and white over a rich, transparent brown ground. This piece gracefully demonstrates the characteristic simple form, intimate size and glowing luminosity for which early pieces from this series are known. Etched signature "Joel Philip Myers 1979." About the Contiguous Fragment series: The painterly, blown glass vessels that make up Joel Philip Myers' Contiguous Fragment series were inspired by Myers' experiences on sabbatical in Austria in the mid 1970s. Inspired by vineyards, he began to experiment with drawing on the surface of vessels using glass cane. "Upon returning to the United States, he wanted to extend his palette by creating large planes of color. 'A painter can take a brush and paint large volumes of space and color and linear aspects. I wanted to have that.' The cane drawings were limiting and Myers began experimenting with large shard elements. These were made by blowing spheres, then breaking them and flattening the pieces, which could then be cut with hot wire. Over time the shards became more complex using cased glass that had two colors. The shards were reheated and sometimes blasted and laid onto the surface of the vessel forms, either singly or in layers in a process best described as marquetry. Eventually this led to what has become known as the 'Contiguous Fragment' series that he stayed with for a good while during the 1980s. The vessel forms in this series… were distinguished simply by colors, numbers and dates. The 'Contiguous Fragment' series were small and intimate, very simple blown cased forms with a certain amount of luminosity to them, with a great deal of surface involvement using shards and sandblasting. They were 'semi-cylindrical, soft forms that curved toward the bottom with very small bases. " From an excerpt of an essay by Dan Klein, written for Wexler Gallery's October/November 2007 exhibition catalog. About Joel Philip Myers: After graduating with honors from the Department of Advertising Design at Parsons School of Design in 1954, Joel Philip Myers traveled to Copenhagen, Denmark where he spent a year studying ceramic design. Upon returning to the United States, Myers enrolled in the Ceramics department at Alfred University in New York, where he earned both his BFA and MFA. After gradating in 1963, Myers was invited to serve as Director of Design at Blenko Glass Company in Milton, WV. Myers was aware of the work Harvey Littleton was doing in Glass, and began to teach himself about the process during his free time in Blenko's studios. In 1970, he accepted a position at Illinois State University in Normal, IL, where he established a widely respected glass art department. Myers served as Distinguished Professor of Art at ISU until 1997, where he contributed to the development of a long list of noteworthy glass artists. Joel Philip Myers has received both the Honorary Life Member and Lifetime Achievement Award from the Glass Art Society, is a Fellow of the American Crafts Council, and a Fellowship recipient from the National Endowment for the Arts. His work has been shown in group and solo exhibitions at galleries and museums throughout the world. Public Collections include The Art Institute of Chicago, IL: the Indianapolis Museum of Art, IN; The Museum of Decorative Art, Prague; Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY; Corning Museum of Glass, NY; and Hokkaido Museum of Modern Art, Japan. 7 1/2" H