world glass
group exhbition

jen elek
butchiballs

jeanne ferraro
first love

world glass: group exhibition
august 16 - september 7, 2008
opening reception: sunday, august 17, 3 - 6 pm

Each summer since the Traver Gallery opened its Tacoma location nearly five years ago, it has presented an invitational group show celebrating excellence in the field of glass. The central themes of the Annual World Glass Exhibition have varied from year to year, and this August, we are delighted to showcase an exciting and diverse selection of new work by outstanding female glass artists from around the world.

Historically, glass has been a male-dominated medium. In the factories of Murano, a major glass center for centuries, women have only recently been permitted to work with the material. Even within the American Studio Glass Movement, women have just begun to be regarded as equals by male glassworkers, and they often must work twice as hard to earn the respect of their peers and the attention of critics and collectors.

Despite the great effort necessary to succeed in the glass world, women are working with the material in greater numbers each year - and bringing a fresh perspective to the medium that deserves our attention. From the colorful whimsy of Lisa Zerkowitz’s beach balls, to the tongue-in-cheek social commentary of Susan Stinsmuehlen-Amend’s Common Vessels, the pieces featured in this exhibition were selected for the sensitivity, humor, and playfulness they demonstrate. Within this commonality, the work takes an extraordinarily diverse array of forms, ranging from Jeanne Ferarro’’s figurative sculpture to Marianne Buus’s intriguing coiled vessels to Jen Elek’s colorful, abstract pieces.

The show includes work by Shelley Muzylowski Allen (Sedro Wooley, WA), Nancy Blair (Melbourne Beach, FL), Marianne Buus (Ebeltoft, Denmark), Nancy Callan (Seattle, WA), Nadege Desgenetez (Canberra, Australia), Laura Donefer (Ontario, Canada), Jen Elek (Seattle, WA), Jeanne Ferarro (Seattle, WA), Katrina Hude (Greenbank, WA), Micha Karlslund (Ebeltoft, Denmark), Erika Kohr (Portland, OR), Kelly O’Dell (Stanwood, WA), Amy Rueffert (Urbana, IL), Susan Stinsmuehlen-Amend (Ojai, CA), Cappy Thompson (Seattle, WA), Lotte Thorsoe (Ebeltoft, Denmark) and Lisa Zerkowitz (Seattle, WA).

www.travergallery.com

Currently on display in Seattle:

sean albert: phenomena:observing space
glass and mixed media sculpture

ethan stern: marked
glass sculpture

Tacoma
1821 E Dock Street #100
Tacoma, WA 98402
253.383.3685 phone
253.383.3687 fax
tacoma@travergallery.com

Tacoma gallery hours are Tuesday 9 - 5,
Wednesday - Saturday 10 - 6 and
Sunday 12 - 5