No top menu
<!-- no script -->
|
|
About Schmidt and his work at the CVA |
| By
Deanna Lytle |
|
|
Feb 8, 2005 |
|
 |
| “Precious Stones Series #68" |
“Landscape/Seascape/Horizon interrupted/The stone in the field/The simple strong earth elements of glass, steel, and bronze/The object that calms the eye/These are the metaphors that drive my imagination,” writes artist Jack Schmidt of his exhibit, “Sculptural Glass,” at the Center for the Visual Arts Gallery.
The free, public exhibit is open through Saturday, Feb. 12, and features blown glass forms, bottles and wall drawings.
According to Schmidt, he has been interested in art since an early age. “I was always making things with my hands as a kid,” he said.
As an undergraduate student at Bowling Green State University, he took a course in glass and caught the eye of Fritz Dreisbach, a student of Harvey Littleton, the father of the studio glass movement. The two worked together at the Toledo Museum School of Art and Design before Schmidt went to Illinois State University to obtain a master’s degree. Schmidt then traveled to various universities to offer workshops and lecture, notably serving as visiting instructor and acting department head of the graduate and undergraduate glass program at the University of Wisconsin in Madison.
 |
| “Table Rock Bottles #2” |
Schmidt then settled back in his hometown of Toledo to make a living from selling his artwork. As he puts it, “I wanted to do what I had been telling my students to do.” From his studio in downtown Toledo near the Maumee River, Schmidt creates blown glass pieces that are shown in galleries around the country.
“Sculptural Glass” is being exhibited in celebration of the construction of the Toledo Museum of Art’s new Glass Pavilion. And looking at Schmidt’s work, there is a lot to celebrate about art glass. “Table Rocks,” Schmidt’s newest series, consists of brightly colored, rounded bottles displayed on fabricated steel tables. The colors of the bottles are reminiscent of earthy stones with splotchy patterns interspersed. Other sculptures in the exhibit look as if metal, granite and glass have combined in geometrical arrays of color.
The CVA Gallery is open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.
For more information, contact the art department at 419.530.8300.
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
