Workshop EXPLORING MATERIALS by Emily Hunt

“DAY 1
The course will give a concise overview of the history and evolution of glass craft artists from various periods in art history. It will then highlight the contemporary examples of artists who use glass as a medium for artistic expression and experimentation. We will discuss the different techniques of glass art such as fusing, stained glass and blown glass, which involve heating and shaping glass in different ways. We will also examine the work of some of the most influential glass artists in the modern period, such as Harry Clarke, Ken Phillips, James Carpenter, Dale Chihuly, Paul Dufour, Susan Stinsmuehlen-Amend, Ray King, Kerstin Brätsch, Timo Fahler and Crystal Schenk. We will analyse how they use glass to create aesthetic effects and convey meanings.

In the practical part of the class, we will learn how to create our own stained glass simulation using black card. We will sketch a design based on our own inspiration based on either a figure or object. We will then cut our sketch into segments and choose colors that correspond to content and meaning. We will assemble these segments on a window frame to construct a collaborative window art piece with fellow participants. This will allow us to experiment with color theory, light transmission and composition principles.

DAY 2
The course will continue with a deeper exploration of contemporary artists that use glass in their practice. We will also examine other mediums such as gelatin that allow artists to manipulate light in a transient way. We will discuss the work of Harry Smith, Jenna Kaës, Sharona Franklin, Anna May Kirk, Johan & Justin Lowe, Gitte Maria, Shannon Garden-Smith, Shannon Bool and Courtney Baker. We will analyze how they use glass and gelatin to create aesthetic effects and convey meanings.

We will resume from the previous day and experiment with alcohol inks on plastic sheets to simulate stained glass. We will complete the collaborative window piece and share our feedback with the other participants. We will evaluate the narrative and flow of the window piece and reflect on the successes and failures of the project.” (Text by courtesy of Emily Hunt)

Emily Hunt (b. 1981) lives and works in Berlin since 2017. Hunt has been running Big Ego Books since 2015. She was the co-Dictator of DUKE Magazine, an artist magazine focusing on Australian artists and thrift culture between 2005-2009. She has shown extensively in Australia since 2012, including at the Museum for Contemporary Art Sydney, First Draft, Casula Powerhouse, UTS Gallery, Artspace, Bundanon Trust, UQ Art Museum, KNULP and The Commercial gallery.Her work is held in collections that include The Cruthers Collection of Women’s Art (CCWA), Artbank, and Manly Art Gallery. She was awarded Marten Bequest Scholarship for Painting (2015), and Ian Potter Cultural Trust Grant (2017), with two grants from Australia Council for the Arts (2014 & 2019). Her work has recently been shown at the Arp Museum Remagen, Kunstraum Kreuzberg Bethanien, Zitadelle Spandau (ZAK) and Sim Smith Gallery, London. In 2020 Hunt was selected as a participant in the Goldrausch Künstlerinnen Projekt. In 2021, Hunt’s first solo exhibition in Berlin opened at Galerie Wedding.

More information on the Emily Hunt Website.