Innovative glass

Press, 1 October 1985, Page 22

Innovative glass

“Artists in Glass.” Flat (“stained”) glass panels at the Robert McDougall Art Gallery, until October 16. Reviewed by Fiona Ciaran. The Robert McDougall Art Gallery and two Christchurch glass artists, Ben Hanly and Suzanne Johnson, must be congratulated on this, their first flat glass exhibitions respectively. Thirteen panels are featured, designed by seven invited New Zealand artists: Philippa Blair, Nigel Brown, Debra Bustin, Patrick

dows for Christchurch buildings.

Hanly, Ralph Hotere, Claudia Pond-Eyley, and Philip Trusttum. Ben Hanly and Suzanne Johnson painted, stained, etched, and fired the glass where necessary then leaded up all panels. Brown, Bustin, and Hotere painted their own work. This is an important exhibition and the idea for it occurred to Hanly and Johnson two years ago and grew after collaboration with Trusttum in producing win-

It brings before the public and together a kind of flat glass that until now has been made in isolated cases in New Zealand. It bears little relation to mainstream New Zealand flat glass design.

All seven artists are keen to do more designs and this exhibition, announces a new direction and much needed alternatives for secular and ecclesiastical glasswork. Their work is an important, contribution to New Zea-, land’s development of excellent, diverse, indigenous,, flat glass design. Good painters do not' necessarily make good flat* glass designers and their, work usually requires sensitive interpretation to suit the medium. In this case all of the panels are successful and each of the designers has his or her own strength. Some panels invite inevitable comparison with the painters’ own canvas work and with the glass designs •of Le Corbusier. and Ma-, tisse. Brown’s explosive “What About Peace on Earth” is very topical and ' Hotere’s “Large Window Frame” is stunning. PondEyley’s window-window and Blair’s “Cloak” are clever, concepts. '

This exhibition also car-’ Ties art-historical significance. In 1894-95 designs for* stained-glass panels commissioned from a group of, French painters that included Bonnard and' Toulouse-Lautrec were executed in New York and exhibited 'in Paris. On few occasions since then have some of the leading painters in any country contributed designs for a flat glass exhibition.

“Artists in Glass” is possibly the first in which the painter-designers have participated in the execution. Do not miss this show.