LIFEFORMS AWARD WINNERS ANNOUNCED
Ten Artists Recognized for Outstanding Work

PITTSBURGH, PA – July 5, 2013 – Ten artists received awards today for their work in the “Lifeforms” exhibition at Pittsburgh Glass Center. Only 50 works of art were selected for the exhibition out of 102 submissions received from the U.S., Scotland, Italy, Japan, Australia, England and Canada. An independent jury of four selected the artists for the exhibition and the award winners based on accuracy, aesthetic beauty, presentation and originality. The award winners include:

Award of Excellence
Lyla Nelson (Pittsburgh, PA) “Hyacinth”
Joe Peters (Battleboro, MA) “Greater Blue-ringed Octopus on a Teeming Coral Reef”
Beau Tsai (La Palma, CA) Common Kingfisher

Award of Achievement
Elizabeth Johnson (Boulder, CO) “Summer of ’69 in Manchester, New Hampshire”
Mike Mangiafico and Ed Pinto (Pittsburgh, PA) “Carpenter Ant”
Sam McMillen (Seattle, WA) “Chantrellow”

Award of Merit
Rachel Elliott (Edinburgh, Scotland) "Fragile Entomology”
Nancy Arthur McGehee (San Diego, CA) “Pacific Mole Crab”
Evan Kolker (Oakland, CA) “Nepenthes bicalcarata”

“Lifeforms” was organized and coordinated by Robert Mickelsen, a Florida-based glass artist, and inspired by Rudolf and Leopold Blaschka’s glass biological models made in the 19th and 20th centuries for Harvard University’s museums. The PGC exhibition including contemporary flameworked models, cast impressions, blown renditions, and an actual fish cast in glass will be on display from July 5 to Nov. 17, 2013.

Pittsburgh Glass Center
5472 Penn Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15206

The jurors – Anna Boothe, artist; Heather McElwee, Pittsburgh Glass Center executive director; Susan M. Rossi-Wilcox, retired curatorial associate and administrator of the Ware Collection of Blaschka Glass Models of Plants and Wayne Strattman, president Strattman Design – recognized 10 artists and gave three awards of excellence at $1,000 each, three awards of achievement at $500 each and three awards of merit at $200 each.

All of the work in the “Lifeforms” exhibition at Pittsburgh Glass Center can be viewed in the online catalog posted at www.pittsburghglasscenter.org. All of the submissions to the exhibition can permanently be found on the “Lifeforms” web site at www.glasslifeform.org/gallery

About Blaschka
Robert Mickelsen conceived of the idea for the exhibition. He said that it was more than homage to the Blaschkas. It represents a logical progression from then to now, morphing biological models of the 19th century into inspired works of art of the 21st century.

“The representation of natural forms has been a tradition in glass for as long as humans have worked the material. It is a natural fit, if you will excuse the pun. But no one has ever succeeded in such accurate and realistic representation as the Blaschkas. This may be because no one has been tasked with the challenge the way the Blaschkas were – until now,” said Mickelsen.

In 1886, George Lincoln Goodale commissioned Leopold Blaschka and his son Rudolf to make botanical models for the Harvard Botanical Museum. He chose the Blaschkas because they worked in glass. In the late-19th century, glass was the best material for the job.
Other models of the times were made out of papier-mâché or wax and did not stand the test of time. No other material could be molded and manipulated to render organic forms as beautifully and accurately nor relied upon to last as long as glass. Funded by Elizabeth C. Ware and her daughter Mary Lee Ware, the Blaschkas made more than 4,000 models of plants and flowers over the next several decades.

"Leopold and his son Rudolf Blaschka are recognized as consummate lampworkers. Many artists, particularly flameworkers, have been inspired by their skill since the first models were on exhibition. The original idea of the competition was paired with the Glass Art Society's conference in Boston/Cambridge where attendees could view the Blaschkas' glass models of plants and invertebrates on permanent exhibition at the Harvard Museums of Natural History. Although ‘Lifeforms’ has taken a different direction, the work on exhibition at PGC will offer that same enthusiastic love of nature that the Blaschkas held,“ said Susan Rossi-Wilcox, retired curatorial associate and administrator of the Ware Collection of Blaschka Glass Models of Plants.

About Pittsburgh Glass Center
Glass Art: We teach it. We create it. We promote it. We support those who make it. Pittsburgh Glass Center is a nonprofit, public access glass school, gallery and state-of-the-art studio. Visit us in Pittsburgh's East End at 5472 Penn Avenue, two blocks west of the Penn & Negley Avenue intersection or visit us online at www.pittsburghglasscenter.org.

Lifeforms Artists:
Luke Jerrum, featured artist
Tim Jerman, featured artist
Paul Stankard, featured artist

Carolyn Baum, Marta Bernbaum, Ted Clark, Brent Cole, Julie Conway, Vittorio Costantini, Cas Davey, Jacci Delaney, Lisa Demagall, GingerELA
Kathleen Elliot, Mark Elliott, Rachel Elliott - Award of Merit, Shane Fero, Kimberly Fields, Wesley Fleming, Suellen Fowler, Mathieu Grodet, Karina Guévin and Cédric Ginart, Randy Scott Harris, Jason Howard, Ronnie Hughes, Elizabeth Johnson - Award of Achievement, Theo Keller, Evan Kolker - Award of Merit, Carmen Lozar
Emma MacIntosh, Mike Mangiafico and Ed Pinto - Award of Achievement, Alex McDermott, Nancy Arthur McGehee - Award of Merit, Sam McMillen (Award of Achievement), Robert Mickelsen, Lyla Nelson (Award of Excellence), Jupiter Nielson, Joe Peters - Award of Excellence, Sally Prasch, Kait Rhoads, Jahnny Rise, Donna Sakson, Mike Shelbo, Jeremy Sinkus, Sean Taylor, Demetra Theofanous, Victor Trabucco, Beau Tsai (Award of Excellence), Jennifer Umphress, Toby Upton, Mauro Vianello, David Willis and Lisa Zerkowitz

See also > Agenda >USA

Pittsburgh Glass Center
5472 Penn Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15206
+1 (412) 365-2145
https://www.pittsburghglasscenter.org