Inspired by the beautiful and practical quilts found in estate sales of rural Michigan, artist Susan Longini acknowledges this fiber arts form with her chosen medium: glass. Luminosity: Glass Artwork of Susan Longini will feature the “Quilt Series” of her glass quilts. The show opens September 1 at YoloArts’ Gallery 625 in Woodland.
Longini has been working in glass for almost 40 years and her work is exhibited throughout the U.S. and is in public and private collections in the U.S., Europe, and Asia. She is a frequent lecturer, guest curator, and juror. She received her B.A. of Fine Arts from the University of Michigan and did postgraduate studies in glass at San Jose State University and California College of the Arts. From 1986 to 2003 she was head of the Glass Program and Adjunct Professor at Ohlone College in Fremont. She serves on the board of the Glass Alliance of Northern California (GLANC), whose mission is to further education and appreciation of glass art.
Longini’s particular interest in glass is pate de verne, literally “paste of glass”, which uses glass frits and powders formed by hand and placed in a mold, then fired in a kiln to produce one-of-a-kind sculptures. This ancient glass-forming technique was first documented in artifacts from Phoenicia and Egypt around 1500 B.C.E. Small granules or ‘frits’, and powders are mixed with binders, pressed into the desired shape and fired in a kiln to fuse the granules together.
“This is the first solo glass exhibit at Gallery 625 and it is thrilling to be able to show large scale pieces created with a technique that has been used for thousands of years by such an accomplished northern California artist,” said Janice Purnell, the show’s curator and associate director at YoloArts.
The exhibition opens September 1 and continues through October 3. A meet the artist reception is planned 5:30 – 8 p.m., Friday, September 1, during the downtown Woodland First Friday Art Walk. YoloArts board member Beth Jackson will be the reception host.
Gallery 625 is located at 625 Court Street in Woodland, in Yolo County’s Erwin Meier Administration building and is open Monday – Friday 8 a.m. – 5 p.m., and by appointment. For more information contact YoloArts at 530-309-6464.