2012 News Releases
NEW, Complimentary Program
FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
CONTACT: Janet Peterson, Marketing and Public Relations Director
TEL: (856) 825-6800, Ext. 108 / FAX: (856) 825-2410
E-MAIL: jpeterson@wheatonarts.org
PRESENT “STUDIO WIDE OPEN” PROGRAM
MILLVILLE, NJ – The CGCA Fellowship Program at WheatonArts is a professional level program providing focused and self-directed artists working in glass with a concentrated period of time to work alongside their peers. Fellows work toward a common goal of advancing their careers through the perfection or refinement of techniques needed to develop a new or expanded body of work.
The Spring Session Fellows will present, “Studio Wide Open,” a special program on May 25 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. The program is free and open to the public. The evening includes a hot glass demonstration by the current Fellows, light refreshments and a “behind the scenes” opportunity to explore the hot shop, talk with the staff and visit the Fellows in their personal studios.
The Fellows are:
■ Anne Petters (Dresden, Germany) – Petters, a multi-media artist with a strong background in glass art, received a Diploma in Fine Arts/Glass at the Institute of Ceramic and Glass Art in Germany in 2009.and in 2011 an M.F.A. in Sculpture/ Dimensional Studies at Alfred University, NY. She has been showing work in glass museums and art institutions in Germany. She understands the political change in her country, which she experienced as a displacement of reality, as a basic influence on her lifestyle and artistic work. She explains, “My interest in controlling and displaying moments of our fleeting, vulnerable existence leads me to a poetic, metaphoric use of glass and other materials, including natural phenomena.” Petters, an Assistant Professor at the Institute for Ceramic and Glass Art in Hoehr-Grenzhausen, Germany, recently earned an honorary diploma in the Jutta Cuny Franz Memorial Award.
■ Benjamin Wright (Philadelphia, PA) - Wright earned a B.S. in Evolutionary Biology from Dartmouth College, a B.F.A. from the Appalachian Center for Crafts and an M.F.A. from Rhode Island School of Design. He makes a living teaching and making both design-oriented glass and conceptual mixed media sculpture. He has taught at numerous schools in the U.S. including Pilchuck Glass School, Appalachian Center for Craft, Penland School of Craft and classes in Germany and Turkey. He has received a Creative Glass Center for America Fellowship as well as the prestigious Hauberg Fellowship from Pilchuck Glass School. Wright’s work can be seen in the contemporary collection of the American Museum of Glass and the Tacoma Museum of Glass. He is currently a member of the Glass faculty at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, PA.
■ Jessie Blackmer (Hillsborough, NH) – Blackmer graduated with honors from Massachusetts College of Art in 2004 with a B.F.A. in Glass. Shortly after earning her degree she moved to Washington and worked for several well known and talented artists while refining her own technique and developing her own artistic practice. She has been a volunteer, student and staff member at Pilchuck Glass School, and worked as a studio coordinator and an instructor at Pratt Fine Arts Center in Seattle, WA. During her time at Pratt that she received the 2008 Jon and Mary Shirley Scholarship. In 2011 Blackmer received her M.F.A. from Ohio State University where she taught kiln forming, coldworking, flameworking and glassblowing. She was recently featured in the GAS Newsletter.
■ Fukunishi Takeshi (Osaka, Japan) - Takeshi studied metal-craft technique at Osaka University of Arts where he graduated in 1990. In 1993 he graduated from the Institute for Toyama City Institute of Glass Art. He worked as an assistant at Toyama City for four years. He participated in Niijima International Glass Art Festival for the first time in 1995 and acted as Benjamin Moore’s assistant. At Niijima, Takeshi assisted the following artists: Benjamin Edols (2001), Massimo Nordio (2002), Dante Marioni (2004), Davide Salvadore (2005), John De Wit (2006), Bruce Chao (2007), Anthony Schafermeyer (2008), Randy Walker (2009), Mark Petrovic (2010), and David Schwarz (2011). During this time he also learned new kiln techniques. He attended Pilchuck Glass School for the first time in 2011.
CGCA was founded in 1983 by a group of artists, educators and gallery directors who became sensitive to the particular needs and financial burdens facing glass artists. For the past 26 years, 280 CGCA Fellowships have been awarded to artists from around the world, allowing them the opportunity to focus on the development of their artwork. Today, the CGCA Fellowship Program remains the only one of its kind in the U.S. providing emerging and mid-career artists unrestricted access to the facilities and materials necessary for blown, cast and kiln formed glass.
WheatonArts is open Memorial Day, July 4 and Labor Day. Closed Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. Admission: Adults $10.00, $9.00 Senior Adults and $7.00 Students. Children five and under are free. Free to shop and stroll except during outdoor special events. For more information about WheatonArts, call 856-825-6800 or 800-998-4552, or visit www.wheatonarts.org.
WheatonArts strives to make exhibits, events and programs accessible to all visitors. Provide two weeks notice for additional needs. Patrons with hearing and speech disabilities may contact WheatonArts through the New Jersey Relay Service (TRS) 800-852-7899 or by dialing 711.
Funding has been made possible in part by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, by funds from the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation. WheatonArts receives general operating support from the New Jersey Historical Commission, Division of Cultural Affairs in the New Jersey Department of State. Additional funding provided through a grant from the New Jersey Department of State, Division of Traveland Tourism.
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