Small Vessels: Story and Classes

Vessels

Vials

Containers

That's all I've been making lately because they're challenging in technique and yet explosive as canvases as my desire to imagine and create carefully unravels...

Photo by Coury

Whatever you want to call them, these pieces are ultimately one-of-a-kind pieces of jewelry which serve a function: the oil of your choice inside the vessel supplies you with a whiff of balance, health and energy. To see examples of vessels I've made please visit my website and Pinterest.

When I'm surrounded by friends, I'm often surrounded by my glass vessels. Why? Because life happens and we all need something to help us cope with those moments.

My first vessel was born when a friend asked me to make one for her adult daughter who has special needs. My friend had decided, with essential oils, to help her daughter come off a few of her dozens of different medications. The only way she figured she could do it is by putting the oil into a pretty necklace that her daughter would want to wear all the time. Well, it worked!

Looking back, I'm happy to say that it worked for them and for many others who choose to have the oils at their side contained in an art glass small vessel worn on a necklace. The following is a quote from a friend,  "My vessel focuses all my senses on the beauty of the moment - captured by Liliana in glass - and helps put life's stresses (big and small) into perspective."

All you need is a drop of essential oil (to avoid spillage) which will last you for a couple of weeks. You may renew the scent with a fresh drop or give your vessel a rinse with soap water and try a new oil. Essential oils can be found online or, as I’ve been doing, acquire them at Whole Foods. If you’re worried about spillage, place a tiny piece of cotton on the bottom of your vessel to absorb the oil.

This is my personal vessel which I have worn almost daily for almost two years. I've had a variety of oils in it over time which I selected based on what I was in need for at the time, i.e. energy or balance, to treat a cold or to manage appetite... I often find myself holding it in my hand and just looking at it like I would at a painting.

Photo by Coury

I often design and create vessels based on specific requests about color, thematic aura and other elements preferred by the person in question. My absolute favorite is being able to imagine the person for whom the piece is destined and think of her all along the process till the vessel is ready. All vessels are made of glass which is properly annealed and constructed so that it lasts forever. However, it is glass so treat it accordingly… with care..

I love sharing my technique and my approach to designing and creating small vessels. In order to benefit from my class, the student needs to be conversant in lampwork vocabulary and own his/her skill with moderate certainty. If not, then our journey will start with learning how to wind discs and make hollow beads. Secondly, we will learn how to blow small balls on the end of a pipe with an even bubble inside and a balanced distribution of glass around it. One exercise in class is all about designing and making handles on a barrel glass bead. Handles take longer sometimes than the vessel itself because of everything we're feeling: there's this sense of profound relief after having brought the piece to its fruition and, yet, the handles turn to be a bit tricky. That's why a week-long class is the best way to arrive at a point where all the exercises we do make sense and bring great results. All along, sprinkled atop everything we make, we will imagine color and design, and develop a sense of personal voice in our expressions.

I've scheduled to teach two such classes this year both in May. I will share everything I've learned over the years with glass: discs, hollow beads and small vessels, while tailoring my knowledge to students' concern and needs. We will discuss ways of finishing the vessels into necklaces. Let me know if you have questions by e-mail.

Glass Beadmaking: Fun with Hollows at Snow Farm in Williamsburg, MA (click the title).

Colorful Storytelling: Lampworked Glass Hollow Beads and Small Vessels at Pittsburgh Glass Center (click the title).

How long did it take you to make this?

Joyce (J): How long did it take you to make this bead?
Liliana (L): [pause]

No matter how long I take to look at the to-be-appraised-in-terms-of-time piece handed to me, it's more often that I give an answer because it is a question after all and it requires some sort of answer which is valued more if given in units of time. Except, even though I don't have trouble counting minutes and after so many years of doing it I could intuitively tell how many minutes something took to make, I hesitate because the location in my brain where the answer lies momentarily gets flooded with hard-to-sequence minutes, and hours, and days when I lose track of time.

Time becomes irrelevant when I'm behind the torch, rod in hand with a beautiful, hot flame which is as eager to veil my glass with heat as I am to discover something new while melting the glass with some imaginary purpose. This purpose is somewhat ill-formed and yet it acquires so much speed and determination in this complicated dance of multiple participants whose moves are predetermined by their very existence.
And, yet, here I am, planning ahead for resources including glass rods and tools on my station, plenty of propane in the tank and a well-running source of oxygen, and time. How long will this take me? Do I have the time right now to dedicate myself to this experiment?

Over the years I have prepared myself plenty o'times for wasted glass, wasted propane and oxygen, wasted electricity, and well-deserved pain in my hands and my back for sitting down at the torch for too long, for dry and sensitive eyes. Wasting time is one concept that I've been able to manage better than feeling my pain and the regret peeking out the counting of fewer rods in my vast collection of glass. Why do you ask? The only way I can answer this question is in units of love - I feel love to infinity when I'm behind the torch and melting glass.

J: How long did it take you to make this bead?
L: This bead represents a collection that took me three years or so to develop and feel good about so that I could systematize the process and make one in about 1 hour.
J: [shakes her head in disbelief] And how much is it?
L: $65.

Units are important, I know. Some conversations have to be concise and very clear. Oftentimes the subject of such conversations is not value but rather something more quantifiable and measurable: time in minutes or hours, cost in dollars, etc. etc. These conversations do become more substantive in value as I develop relationships with my students and customers; my students make wonderful customers :-) since they arrive at value the hard way through their own practice of the theory I teach them and the demonstrations in my classes. I find it easier to have conversations of value with people who I see more than once and instead of making sentences at each other we venture into story-telling, each story - one block at a time - gets placed into a foundation of important relational significance and investment into time.

J: What was on your mind when you made this? [J is pointing to a necklace with a large focal bead the upper part of which is a vast sky in a few colors of blue. The lower half is a horizon of tall skinny grass on a hot silvered beach.]
L: This piece and 10 others sprung out of a time in my life when I needed space. I felt burdened emotionally and I need silence. Most of the time I feel silence and peace when I'm at the ocean or I'm looking at fine artists' depictions of space by a large body of water.
J: [shakes her head vigorously] That's exactly it! I felt so peaceful and rested when brought this bead to my eyes and when I felt it in my hand.
L: [smiles and shakes her head in agreement]

Not all conversations are equal. There's value in all of them. I appreciate all the opportunities I create and I'm given whether I'm in my showroom, at a show or in my classroom. Let's give each other chances to have all kinds of conversations and the value will unveil itself at some point no matter the cost.

The "Unselected Poem" below by Chris Bursk is a reflection on the issues at hand. I hope you like it as much I did.

VIII
Say a man writes 2 poems a week for 50 years
- take away 1 poem for every week
his hands got distracted
with a papier-mache Mount Vesuvius
his daughter was molding
or a fort he was building with hi Cub Scouts
or a protest sign he held up at the statehouse.
You do the math:
52 weeks times 2 poems a week equals 104,
minus 15 neglected poems equals 89,
times 50 years equals 4,450,
minus 52 for the long year his mother took to die,
minus 26 for the six months his father took to die.
That leaves 4,372 poems by the time he's 70.
Maybe 400 or so, if he's lucky, make their way
into print, which leaves 3,972 poems
just waiting to be thrown away when he dies.
But, look, he's at work on yet another poem.

published by The Sun in their 40th Anniversary Issue (January 2014, issue 457)

Ode to wonderful students

Yes, these are my students (missing Becca who sneaked out before I could snap this photo). Some more advanced in the lampwork skill but mostly beginners, they took my Melting Through Glass week-long workshop at Snow Farm this past August. You can probably tell that their aural predisposition continues beyond this moment and that they are all as cheerful, friendly, and simply wonderful all the time including when they pose for a photo. Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Arizona, Texas, New Jersey and Massachusetts - these states couldn't have been better represented. Yes, I mean that for the one from Texas as well! ;-) I miss you all!!

 Thank you for coming together as a community that grew together every day with knowledge and laughter, and yet each individual managed to express herself by making distinct, unique and beautiful beads.... Check them out below. The beads are lying on top of one of our teaching aids and the adorning flora was carefully selected by our flower specialist who made sure that we always had beautiful local flowers to be inspired by while at the torch. All the beads and the display for our Gala event (organized at the end of the week to show student work in all the classes on campus) are products of my students' love for glass, creative energy and great camaraderie. The majority of the beads on display are by my students who had never made beads or melted glass ever before - amazing, isn't it?!!

And here we are at work: glass rod in hand and flame on.

Shamanka - Female Effigy - will be showcased in 1000 Beads (Lark Crafts)

Shamanka, detail

I'm thrilled that Shamanka has been accepted into the book titled, Showcase 1000 Beads, juried by Kristina Logan. I'm looking forward to seeing this publication which is due to come out in January 2014.

Even though she is to stand on her own in this book, Shamanka continues to be a proud member of the series in collaboration with Sue Getchell.

To read more about our collaboration and inspiration, visit my earlier posts.

Do let me know if you'd like a signed copy of the book by e-mailing me.

I'm back from teaching two classes at Snow Farm with great memories and new friends.

Just back from 10 days at Snow Farm teaching lampwork glass to people with interesting stories and engaging ways of telling them. They come to learn new ways or perfect the ones they’ve already developed (whether in previous classes or self-taught) and to express themselves while gathered in a community permeated with and lifted by creative energy. I thrive in this energy myself as it is simply irreplaceable and much needed for our daily survival!

I taught two classes. In my first class we spent three days having Fun with Hollows, and in my second class we focused on Glass Beads & Buttons.

The week-end intensive workshop was about learning how to blow hot glass into hollow glass beads and vessels, and how to create unique shards to decorate a variety of surfaces. The blowing was probably what excited my students the most as it is quite complicated: one has to be able to understand and apply several skills at the same time. The intuitive feel that drives this process connects mind with body, and we see cool magic happening in front of our eyes. And you should have seen those eyes!! As the ball on the end of the pipe was getting bigger, so were the eyes. Accomplishment felt differently each time, but the joy was pure and very motivating each time.

The week-long button class stayed unbuttoned all week. Four of the eight students were complete beginners. They all opened themselves up and stayed curious and excited throughout while taking on quite a rigorous approach to practicing everything they learned. By the end of the class everyone had an abundance of glass beads & buttons - and even a couple of beautiful marbles.

In addition to wanting to share my passion and knowledge of lampwork, I have to admit that my absolute favorite aspects of teaching are:

•  Meeting and making new friends.
•    Seeing my students throw themselves into this process and then watching their identities unravel while getting to know glass, the lampworking process and the work they make.
• Witnessing a profound drive for self-expression being realized in techniques that require hard work and a lot of attention.
• Sharing in the pure joy of holding one’s glass beads and being able to pass that joy onto others.

I will be teaching one more class this season at Snow Farm, Through the Melting Glass: Introduction to Glass Beads. We will spend an entire week learning about soda-lime glass and many different techniques to create and decorate shapes  - all the while learning finding and learning more about ourselves, which is not only rewarding but empowering as well. I'm certain that we will have both beginner and intermediate students in our class which makes the learning experience so much richer!

So, let’s make more friends and definitely more beads! Looking forward to seeing you in my classes.

Below are a few photos from my week-long class. Enjoy and please share them with family and friends.

Diana made this bowl in a raku class the week-end before
and then filled it with glass beads, buttons and a couple of marbles
 in our week-long lampworking workshop

My students at work creating beautiful glass objects
infused with creative energy and colorful stories...

I don't have a soundtrack to include with this photo
but if you were there, you'd've been talking & listening, laughing & sighing -
sharing in a close social landscape of this wonderful community.

Everyone in my class would agree if I said:
Barbara worked very hard to understand & develop a skill  in this medium,
and, OMG, did it pay off!! She took home beautiful beads!!

Janet is making a hollow bead and Brenda is applying
glass frit to the surface of her bead for instant beautiful design.
The intensity of concentration is self-evident while I'm pretty sure
that ABBA was providing us with background rhythm & melody.

Effigies, launched

And - YES- it took a village!

Sue Getchell and I have worked very closely and yet very independently on our distinct yet interrelated formulations leading to a series of three sculptures (so far), inspired by the Paracas Female Effigy (see previous post). We also owe thanks to Janet and Celeste.

Thank you, Celeste, for guiding our research about the Paracas Effigy and helping us discover significant anthropological narratives regarding its civilization of origin. The sociocultural and artistic values of this piece are deeply interconnected: symbols of snakes depicted on the body take on meanings of power, light and darkness, present and future. Through discovery, our project of creating effigies evolved into imagining these people in their roles, shaded by today's understandings: a shamanka, a noblewoman, and a shaman.

Thank you, Janet, for nourishing my spirit and for taking on the task of identifying the style of the braids on the Paracas Effigy and weaving them carefully into these intricate contributions to the Female Effigy: Shamanka.


And here she is:

And here are the two collaborative pieces. Meet Female Effigy: Noble Woman and the Male Effigy: Shaman respectively.

Read below to shed some light on the meaning of this series in our artist statement.

Imagine an effigy as your only portal to understanding a long-gone people - their ways of living, beliefs &  values.
The Female Effigy Jar (MFA Boston, Ancient Americas) that inspired the series of effigies created by Liliana Glenn & Susan Getchell, lampwork glass & fiber artists respectively, is attributed to Paracas (Peru), 200-1 B.C.
The Paracas Effigy is known to depict the burial style in which the body was wrapped in many layers of intricate, ornate, & finely woven textiles. Its most prominent features include (1) the opening of the jar which signifies the mouth of the depicted individual and (2) snakes symbolizing power and  life after death.
After much research, Glenn & Getchell interpreted and executed a series of effigy sculptures re-imagining ways of living in a society, the roles individuals took on as its members. Looking back informs the artists’ own understanding of modern life;  land & time are only superficial barriers to valuing artistic expression.

We are very excited to have had the opportunity to work together and are looking forward to continuing our work in this series.
The chance to apply to a publication provided a great impetus for the values we both hold dear i.e. always learning about the world: past and present, ourselves and each other, the media we seek expression in and the connections to many communities in which our identities are always evolving and thriving...

... as are yours.
Stay in touch!

The Making of the Female Effigy Jar

 I bet you've had that experience when you're walking down the street and your eyes are suddenly summoned to an intriguing view of a person whose face, hair, other body parts and expressions excite your sensory buds to an extent to which your mind's eye starts wondering, wondering about that person's story. However, it rarely lasts... the wonder, unless I'm able to make a connection between that physical expression and my emotions, my feelings, my experience... 

When I first saw this sculpture, I couldn't walk away from it without coming back, and again, in awe - it spoke to me of pain and despair, and it frightened me. This is when I decided to read about it.

As I knew more I felt even more with each dive into its history. The insides unraveled into scrolls and scrolls of experience in my extended family, my eyes stirring at the hands of my grandmother and her mother's sitting in front of a loom, carefully placing each thread, one in front of the other as if they are her children who, if placed just right, will eventually unveil themselves and their role in this tightly spun piece of social fabric.

It is no wonder that, after many years since their passing, I wrap my memories of them and their influence in my life in images and objects like this effigy and many others included in the Ancient American Collection at the MFA. I feel the connection to the people who buried their dead and insisted on having something less biodegradable to remember them by. The objects they created were appropriate expressions in their times, and yet, two thousand years later, they transcend and arouse emotions that I understand and feel really deep inside me. These are words, images, narratives and gestures that unite us all across time and land.

So, here I am, in my studio creating while connecting while channeling the aesthetic appeal of this piece. From raw emotion to tight design, while seeking direction, which aspects am I invested in as a maker? 

And, remember, this is a collaboration... But more about that in my (previous and) next post...

So, here are a few pics of the work I've done. They are beads in three categories which will then become components of one sculpture: a face, a body and footing.

I went ahead and assembled one sculpture for which I designed an etched brass component and the hemp braids were skillfully woven by Janet. This piece is still evolving.

Stay tuned for my next post where I will introduce you to Sue's contributions.

New work and new connections

A few days ago, during a visit to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston I saw the Female Effigy Jar (Paracas, Early Horizon (late phase), 200-1 B.C.). I was inspired by her origins, history, cultural significance and objet-d'artistic existence amid a multiplicity of archaeologically meaningful counterparts of the Pre-Colombian South America. I haven't stopped thinking about her since.

Even though I prefer to claim spontaneity when it comes to visiting the MFA - I am a member after all - I had a reason to go this time. You see, there's a call for submissions to Lark Crafts for a publication to showcase 1000 beads. All media are welcome and the juror is Kristina Logan. 

What a great opportunity to let imagination run loose, articulate questions and develop ideas out of issues and circumstances that wash over me like waves quite often but always retrieve into the ocean of life and living thus remaining untold and yet always there!

This is also a chance to seek opportunities for more conversation and connection with a fellow creative person whose work I like and whose process I would like to learn more about.

Sue designs and hooks rugs in addition to felting large and small. I have enjoyed her company, as well as her business over the years ( thank you, Sue! ), and I asked her whether she'd be interested in working with me on submitting to this publication. We've already met and talked; she's as excited about the Female Effigy Jar as I am. 

So, will the Female Effigy Jar come to being reincarnated and present itself as a bead? If so, the circumstances surrounding its rebirth will be different and yet omnipresent. We are two women living and creating in the 21st century and we are on a quest to learn more about ourselves, each other, our media as means to shaping a connection with an ancestral past.

You're welcome to be a part of this journey. Connect with me and us here.

Message from Sue:
I feel so honored to be asked to bring my experiences to the table and create a joint project. Hard/soft, cold/warm are just a few of the characteristics that this endeavor will bring to light. Who are we connected to when we work separately on the same piece; past, present, both? 

Great news which includes a visit to Montreal

I'm sitting in Sabine's kitchen...
My ears are serenaded by Vincent Delerm and my eyes are following a naughty and free squirrel whose purpose, it seems, is to carefully jump from one branch to another of grape and kiwi vines which hold Sabine's porch in a bold embrace.

I'm in Montreal, visiting and enjoying the much welcome imminence of Spring.
Yesterday, in the city of Montreal, I saw a gallery of Inuit Art the doors of which had already been closed by the late hour but the promise of tomorrow was born by the wings of a beautiful owl staring right at me. Most of the bird was comprised of whale bones including her body - a very large whale vertebra. Today, if it doesn't rain too badly, I will head out to the gallery in hope of meeting the sculpture in person and looking for more.

This vacation feels like a nice reward for a very busy few months. 2011 has brought much vivacity into my mostly quiet studio routine.

• Several of the LilianaBead Collections are available for sale at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston in conjunction with the Chihuly Exhibit. It's been about a month and I've already filled 3 large orders! My hands are begging me to take a break while my spirit is thriving. I enjoy the fact that customers enjoy the work I make and choose to adorn their body with it!

Berry Extraordinnaire Collection

• Water is a part of the 10x10x10 Small Works Show at Pittsburgh Glass Center. Consider going by the center as it is a wonderful oasis for anyone who loves glass or is contemplating whether to fall for it perpetually.

Water

• Pennaceous will travel for the next 12 months as part of the ISGB Convergence III Exhibit.

Pennaceous

What now?

Well, I'll enjoy the rest of my stay in Montreal. My host and dear friend not only has a beautiful home and a happening porch, but she's also got a brilliant mind and a loving heart. Thank you, Sabine...

Consider a stronger democracy and please make your voice heard.

Dear all,

I don't usually write to ask for political help, but I am now.

I am really worried about the serious assault being made on a number of government programs that to me are at the core of a fair, just, and democratic society.

Here are items the US House has voted to eliminate entirely or cut deeply:

NPR and PBS
Public financing for presidential elections
AmeriCorps
the Corporation for National Service
civic and history education programs
immigrant civic integration grants
enforcement of net neutrality regulations
election reform grants from the Election Assistance Commission
Fulbright and cultural exchange programs
Head Start
block grants for jobs for inner city youth
Environmental Protection Agency
mass transit

I'm sure I'm leaving out some items.

THESE CUTS ARE NOT ABOUT BALANCING THE BUDGET; THEY ARE ABOUT A RADICAL RESHAPING OF U.S. PRIORITIES. 
The wealthiest Americans have had their tax cuts extended.  No one dares touch the military budget. If you'd like a particularly egregious example, the House voted to continue funding $28 million per year for the US military to advertise at NASCAR events!

Please write to your senators and congressperson.  

Better yet, call their offices.

Tell them you want these programs (and others you believe in) saved.  

Tell them to reduce military spending.  

Tell them to tax fairly. 

• Write to your newspapers.  
• Write to your friends.  
• Donate to progressive causes if you wish. 

This is serious.

Thank you for considering this message and call to action.

Liliana

see:  www.strongerdemocracy.org 

Come and visit with Phil and I on February 20th.

Join us

Phillip Glenn

&

Liliana

for the event

hosted by

Miriam Gallery

and 

organized by

Experimental Art & Business Club

on

Sunday

February 20, 2011

6:30 pm

(click on the link above to learn more about the event)

Hope to see you there

Congratulations to Fountain Street Fine Art (FSFA) Gallery ... and me :)

Any time a new local gallery opens, the artists rush enthusiastically to support its founders and to showcase their work in a new venue when given the opportunity.  And that's exactly what happened.

The Fountain Street Fine Art Gallery received its first visitors in December, 2010 and is  now getting ready to open its first show Unscripted  on January 27, 2011. Artists from all around this area and, possibly beyond, specializing in a variety of media and subjects, have been juried in by Katherine French, director of The Danforth Museum.

Grand Opening Bash- February 5^th, 5-8PM 

at Fountain Street Studios Building in Framingham,MA on the 1st floor

I was among the artists to apply for the first FSFA show. I decided to submit a piece that's been in my mind for some time. My sculpture,  Untitled , measuring about 24" long (see photo below), was juried in.  This blog entry is about the creative/manufacturing process behind this piece

I've had a fascination with seeds and pods long enough to have created a few abstract collections in glass. I've long been attracted by the magic of pods and the engineering behind their most important functions of protecting, transporting and disseminating.

In the meantime, while dedicating more than ten years to glass and its artistic properties, I've considered beads to be like seeds. Beads are elements of a larger concept; their function is to propagate an impregnate the world with visions executed in glass. To me, glass is one of the most interesting, evolving and alive media in that it continuously interacts with its environment, light in particular. Glass renders itself to be imagined and transformed.

Before I take you through the manufacturing process,  you may want to consider what some others have expressed before us.
Out of dozens of websites and resources, here are four:
1. http://theseedsite.co.uk/allpodsfam1.html
2. google search: seeds and pods
3. laura f. bennett / painter
4. art propelled

I made my sketches with pencil & paper and then made the beads. In between bead days, I went to a couple of fabric stores and decided to go with a felted material made of recycled plastic bottles from Sewfisticated. I decided on a solution for my form after spending a few hours at Blick - two cones of styrofoam linked together with wire and glue (weldbond-universal-adhesive). Got my sewing machine out - all ready to go.
Are you ready to see the photos?
Here they come whatever your answer is :)

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