Sunflower 4, 2012
Christopher Ries
Jennifer Osterday – It’s easy to become numb to all the exhibits that come through the Dayton Art Institute. Even I have walked through and thought, “OK, cool art. Now let’s get to Leo’s Bistro and eat.” But something about Dayton Celebrates Glass immediately caught my eye.
Maybe it’s because I saw the Chihuly exhibit more than ten years ago at DAI and fell in love with the beauty of glass. Maybe it’s because when you hear a piece of art in the exhibit weighs more than 1,100 pounds you get a little intrigued. Or maybe it’s the fact that artist Stephen Powell will personally drive his glass work from KY to Dayton in the backseat of his car to ensure it’s set up just right with lighting. I’m gonna say it’s all of the above that has me saying you NEED to check out “Dayton Celebrates Glass.”
Nicole Nett – I agree completely- I think for many people in the area, that particular Chihuly exhibit was a perfect and dramatic introduction to studio glass. Fans of that exhibit will be pleasantly surprised to see several of his pieces in this one. What I particularly enjoyed was the way that the pieces were grouped. There were definite differences in the areas, but they all flowed seamlessly through the various artists and time periods.
Sunflower 4, 2012
Christopher Ries
JO – When I went to a preview of the exhibit, Christopher Ries, one of more than 12 artists that is featured in the exhibit, spoke. Ries immediately won bonus points when he started his presentation by sharing his love of the city of Dayton and calling the DAI a “special jewel.” Well, Dayton is the gem city after all.
Between cameras, mirrors, telescopes and that iPhone in your hand all the time, glass is just about everywhere. Ries just has a way of looking at it differently than the rest of us. He’s known as a classical reductive sculptor, dealing with large blocks of glass that can be up to 4,000 pounds and spending more than a year sculpting it down just right. His Sunflower IV piece that has gotten a large amount of attention is one of his pieces at the exhibit.
NN – What makes his type of glass art different is that it is reductive. Which means, he’s taking away glass, much like a sculptor would take away bits of marble or clay. Much of the glass we see in exhibits such as this are blown glass. The shapes take form by adding material, or growing from a starting point. When listening to him speak about the process, it was pretty interesting, however, it is difficult to understand the true art of it until you see it in person. Sunflower IV is a piece that you can look at, and continue to look at, maybe even come back to it, seeing something new every time. You’ll first be impressed by the sheer size of it, then as you walk closer, you realize the clarity, depth and detail of this
Dinosaur, 2000
Lino Tagliapietra
Lurid Tickle Sniffer, 2007
Stephen Rolfe Powell
Spring, 2005
Christopher Ries
Oxide Blue Basket Set with Flint Lip Wrap, 2000
Dale Chihuly
JO – When you look at any of the glass he sculpts, you’ll see how different it can look from various angles, “That’s the beauty of glass as I see it,” he said. I agree. It’s honestly one of the reasons I love art in general. All it takes is looking at something from a different angle for something to come alive. Glass does this in a very obvious way.
If you need a little boost to get you to the exhibit, Dayton Glass Day on Aug. 9 is the perfect solution. They’ll be having glass artwork made on the premises and you can even make your own glass mosaic magnet that will be showcased during Oktoberfest. It will be free to members and $15 for adults.
So as my friends said after we left the exhibit, “Stay glassy, Dayton.” We’re pretty proud to have this outstanding artwork in our city for a bit.
