Inspired by man-made cairns found in the great outdoors, artist Claire Cowie has been creating sculptures, based on these landmarks, out of papier-mâché, carved foam, urethane resin, wood, and more. During her Visiting Artist Residency at Museum of Glass, she plans to continue this series of cairns by incorporating glass into her sculptures.

Claire Cowie; *Cairn No. 2*, 2013. Wood, leather, paper, ink, mixed media. 56 x 14 x 14 inches. Image courtesy of the artist.

Claire Cowie; Cairn No. 1 (detail), 2013. Wood, leather, paper, ink, mixed media. 84 x 22 x 14 inches. Image courtesy of the artist.

Take five minutes to learn a little more about our Visiting Artist and what she hopes to accomplish at Museum of Glass!

I began making sculptures based on cairns…

After a family reunion trip to Kiawah Island, SC, a few years ago. My family has always hiked and my parents are great discoverers of all kinds of landmarks in the natural world. I have been thinking about using cairns as a psychological marker as well as a locator of pathways.

When I need inspiration for my work I…

Look to my sketchbooks. My biggest problem is really more about focusing and choosing what to resolve. I usually have too many scattered thoughts and I’m so interested in process that my challenges are with resolution and editing rather than inspiration.

My favorite material to work with is…

So many it’s hard to pick a favorite! Nothing beats pencils, pens, and paper. But I also really love learning about new materials. Anything that gets my hands dirty.

During my Museum of Glass residency I hope to…

Build on what I recently worked on at Pilchuck Glass School. I’d like to make some pieces that use color, texture, and asymmetry. These will be elements in mixed-media sculptures that I’ll continue to develop in the up-coming year. I have also been making some glass pieces based on plant dissections, and I’d love to see how some of those would be interpreted in this situation. I recently got to be an artist-in-residence in the Nemhauser Biology Lab at the University of Washington and I like the similarity of the fish-out-of-water state that both residencies provides as well as the notion of translating concepts through another person.

When I’m not working, I am…

Biking, hiking, camping, swimming in Lake Washington, reading, and crafting with my daughter.

Plan a visit to Museum of Glass to see Visiting Artist Claire Cowie working from June 29 through July 3, or watch her residency online.