Families will have the opportunity of making a glass fish or some other kiln-formed piece under the instruction of Fabrizia Bazzo, Lisa Cahill, Joseph Cavalieri and Lee Mathers, along with Carrie Fertig, an American glass-lamp worker now living in Caithness, and Michael Bullen, the studio technician.

The event will take place at the Alastair Pilkington Studio on Sunday, May 25, and Monday, May 26. There is no entry fee but there will be a charge of £5 for each piece made.

The four artists-in-residence will also give presentations at the exhibition in the gallery at Quatre Bras, on the same dates, and explain the techniques used in their work.

Fabrizia Bazzo, from Somerset, is a designer-maker and has been working with glass, mainly for architectural settings, for over 10 years. Although stained glass is essentially a two-dimensional discipline, she has started to make panels which have a three-dimensional element.

During her residency at North Lands she has been developing these ideas further as well as exploring the potential of applying printmaking techniques to kiln-formed glass and combining flat glass with cast and slumped glass.

Lisa Cahill is an Australian artist who has been working with glass for over 10 years. She has taught numerous workshops on kiln forming and was the glass studio and technical supervisor for three years at the Sydney College of the Arts, University of Sydney.

Lisa exhibits nationally and internationally and has been awarded numerous grants and prizes for her work.

She said: "This residency has given me the opportunity to work with more sculptural forms that continue on with my investigations into light and space, time and memory.

"The sheer remoteness of North Lands, being surrounded by the sea and mountainscapes, and the late evening light has given me an endless source of inspiration".

Lybster greenkeeper Stan Fraser is the focus for Joseph Cavalieri in this artwork.

Joseph Cavalieri is from New York and has been working in painted stained glass for over 10 years. His work has been exhibited throughout the US and Europe in galleries and museums.

During a 2007 teacher's assistant position at North Lands, he noted the many friendly people he met in Lybster, so he proposed for his residency to create portraits in glass of these local personalities. He starts with an interview while photographing the subjects, then hand paints portraits on to glass.

Joseph said: "This was a first for me, I had only done a couple of portraits in the past. The challenge was to make interesting art that captures a specific time in these people's lives.

"This was a perfect way to give back to the community and have art that everyone can relate to."

Lee Mathers, an emerging artist from Sydney, Australia, graduated in 2004 at Australian National University's School of Art in Canberra. In 2007 Lee continued her studies, graduating with first-class honours at Sydney College of the Arts, University of Sydney. She is currently undertaking her Master of Visual Arts research degree.

She explained: "With my work I use glass as a sculptural medium to explore ideas of memory and place.

"During my residency, one of my areas of investigation has been the collection of domestic glass objects from local charity stores in Wick and Thurso. Using these objects I have been exploring narratives of loss or longing and the way such objects are capable of holding memories captive – intimate histories that might have otherwise faded through lived time."

The residency programme is sponsored by the Scottish Arts Council.

Printer friendly version

Email this article to a friend

Bookmark this

---