"The bottles were collected from the bars in the neighborhood, and carry my dreams and wishes inside," Joy Huang said April 17 while gazing at the cacophony of glass vessels hanging from the ceiling at "Glass Play: A Joint Exhibition of Professors" at the Cultural Affairs Bureau of Taoyuan County Government from April 16 to May 11.
Differing from most glass exhibitions that showcase the works of masters and their apprentices, the exhibition displays 106 pieces created by a group of 25 art professors dedicated to teaching and promoting the aesthetic richness of life. The artist academics were brought together by glass designer, Professor Shiau Ming-twen of the National Taiwan University of Art in Taipei County for the express purpose of combining glass with other materials so as to present its beauty from a fresh perspective.
"As common as a glass of water, the material has inspired the professors, leading them to attain a level of happiness in the creative world that is beyond description," Director-General of the Cultural Affairs Bureau Chen Shei-saint said at the exhibition's opening ceremony.
Glass, commonly used in daily lives, was another medium of creation for the professors. The ability to transform the plain material into something extraordinary called upon their combined skills, knowledge and expertise. Shiau pointed out that almost everyone had the experience of breaking a glass utensil, but few thought of collecting and recycling the material to create anew. "Warming broken glass in a kiln can melt its sharp and piercing angles, and seeing the sharp point transformed into a rounded smooth surface really moves my heart," Shiau said.
The characteristic of being cold, clinical and divorced from the warmth of life was the impression glass often left in people's minds. This was because the substance was extremely easy to break and was quick to draw blood if coming into accidental contact with human flesh. But the art professors aimed to subvert this negative stereotype and shorten the inexplicable distance caused by the misunderstanding.
This desire could be found in "Three Wishes," one of Huang's works that consists of broken pieces of glass in emerald and amber colors. Numerous strings hung in a row resembled a curtain found at home, and the reflection from the glass increased the work's luster and brightened up the room. What made it genuinely different from bead curtains sold in retail stores were the three empty bottles attached to strings made by series of paper clips joined together.
"The irregular fragments come from alcohol bottles collected from bars and nightclubs," Huang said while explaining the process of collecting damaged and broken bottles and putting them together to form another artistic work. Only three bottles were preserved in their original shape and were engraved with the artist's personal mantra, "Hope, Dream, Expect." This symbolized the main theme of the piece, and naturally, people would associate the three words with the creator's mindset. But Huang explained there was a reason to inscribe these words on the glass bottles. "I use them to carry my wishes and also welcome the participants to help me fulfill this artistic dream."
After studying glass at the Surrey Institute of Art and Design University College and Dudley College in Europe, Huang returned to Taiwan with her creative juices flowing and set off promoting glass making in Taiwan. But much to her disappointment, she found that the use of glass was still limited to the production of goods like dishes, cups and drinking vessels. It seemed that very few people experimented with the material in terms of artistic creation. "The facilities and environment for making glass were not what I was used to in the U.K.," Huang said. "This had a major effect on restraining the development of this medium."
The artist had an inkling there might be a gap in artistic innovation between Taiwan and other countries, and thus was eager to catch up with the international standard. This goal motivated Huang to create artwork consisting of glass fragments. She believed that one day these efforts would help consummate her dream and sustain the development of glass art.
"If more people try to learn about making glass, the material will be treasured and integrated more smoothly across a broader spectrum of life. A valuable work is filled with the meaning and faith of its creator," Huang said. She stressed that working with glass bottles reminded her to hand down the glass-making skill set to the younger generations, while encouraging them to add their unique life experiences to the work. This raised the awareness of glass creation, the shared goal among the exhibition's artists, Shiau claimed. That different people tried using various methods to revive this inexpensive and common material, such as combining glass with painting or scientific technology.
Shiau for example, likes to incorporate technology into his creations and compared this to the literati using computers to increase the efficiency of writing. "There is no good or bad material in terms of creation; what makes a difference is the approach and skill of the artist," he said.
Shiau used a water jet to deliver a precise and clean finish, which resulted in the refined patterns on the glass wing of a butterfly. This was illustrated by one of works featuring an upright white triangular glass piece set on a circular base surrounded by a cloud of butterflies. Up close, the audience could easily distinguish the light blue butterflies, but from a distance, the composition of the image changed slightly. The butterflies gradually disappeared and blended into the bigger wing of the white butterfly.
"Using technology, I can accurately capture the veins of the wings with translucent glass," Shiau said. The transparency of the glass connects with the physical characteristics of the insect and even contrasted actual and virtual themes. As a result, this approach inspired Shiau to create a poetic name for the work, "Ascending to the Land of the Immortals."
Glassware could present both the rational and sentimental sides of the creator and reflect their personal backgrounds and experiences. A wide glass bowl displayed near the exhibition's entrance seemed dazzling under the light, especially in its glass case. The gold foil used to highlight the artwork increased the radiance of the piece and was a signature finishing technique routinely used in creations by Kataoka Misao, guest professor from Japan teaching at the National Taiwan University of Arts.
Taking advantage of local resources, such as gold foil from Kanazawa City of Ishikawa Prefecture, Kataoka adopted them to highlight the natural phenomenon in her work, "Sand Wave." The light foil represented sand blown by the breeze and led the audience to imagine the wind blowing in artist's hometown.
"The exhibition is a great opportunity for people to exchange their ideas about making glass. Even though the raw material is the same, the ways of creating the work and the styles employed differ from person to person," Kataoka said, giving credit to the organizer and looking forward to meeting more glass enthusiasts so as to stimulate creative exchanges in and out of the classroom.
Write to Sandra Shih at sandrashih@mail.gio.gov.tw