bodner051

In my blog in November 2016 [see http://newzealandglass.blogspot.co.nz/2016/11/fred-daden-and-tony-kuepfer-at.html ], I wrote about the wonderful archival film that has recently been resurrected through the NZ Society of Artists in Glass archiving project. In March 1977 English master gaffer Fred Daden came to Inglewood in Taranaki at the invitation of then almost beginner Tony Kuepfer, to show Tony some of the skills of the glass-maker. The film shows Fred repeatedly demonstrating how to make a wine goblet, and especially how to make the foot. Quite out of the blue I was recently offered a decanter and four wine glasses. Together with a set already in my collection, they demonstrate beautifully how much Fred taught Tony, and indeed how good a student Tony was. Photo: Greg Clarkson These pieces certainly resemble the early glass Tony was making, but I wasn't initially entirely sure they were Tony's work. The decanters and goblets of his I have seen are quite elegant, and these...

Northland’s renowned Māori stained glass artist Kathy Shaw-Urlich has died peacefully after a long battle with cancer.  Kathy preparing panels for the wharekai at Whakapara marae in March 2013 Kathy was born in England, but as the daughter of Ron Shaw an English aircraft engineer and Desiree Joan Browne, a former Miss Northland, she affiliated to Ngāti Hau and Te Uri o Te Aho o Ngāpuhi. She made her first visit to New Zealand at the age of 26 to visit her Māori grandmother, and as a proud descendant of Patuone she eagerly explored her Māori heritage and especially her connection to her grandmother’s whānau of Ngāti Hau and Whakapara marae. Although never one to promote herself, Kathy in fact achieved considerable success. She topped her class and won a national competition as well as a scholarship while studying at the Swansea Institute, in Wales, before completing a Masters in Fine Art at Central St Martins in London.  In 1990 she exhibited glass panels at New Zealand H...

I wrote yesterday about the wonderful tamarillos of Lou Pendergrast-Mathieson. But you can't talk about glass tamarillos and not refer to the work of Fran Anderton, who has made tamarillos very much her own fruit.  I have admired them for quite a while, and was very pleased to be able to acquire one from the Whanganui Glass Festival exhibition in October last year.   Fran was born in England (and nothing wrong with that, I say assertively) and moved to New Zealand as a schoolgirl.  She trained in glass design and production at UCOL Whanganui, graduating with a Diploma in 2003. She has a strong interest in the natural envi ronment, which she attributes in part to having a plant propagator for a mother and a florist for a sister, though Fran says she is also influenced by the uniqueness of New Zealand's beautiful native bush, beaches and scenery . Avocadoes, citrus and olives have all provided inspiration for her bottles and bowls, but in my view it is her tamarillo bottle...

I have mentioned before my admiration of the glass of Northland artist Kathy Shaw-Urlich. Yesterday I had the privilege of visiting K athy in her workshop and seeing the wonderful new glass windows she is designing and making for the marae of her Ngati Hau people at Whakapara , north of Whangarei .  Th i s is a project supported by a Te Waka Toi Creative NZ Arts Grant, which Kathy was awarded last year.  A new wharekai (dining room) Te T awaka is to be built next year, and the project includes three windows for that, which Kathy has almost completed . C urrently she is working on the three panels that will fit in the main window of the wharenui Te Ihi o Ne h ua, which was opened in 1998 (see http://www.naumaiplace.com/site/whakapara/home/page/147/marae-buildings/ ). The designs for the win d ows have been developed by Kathy arising from discussions on the marae. There were also visits to places that are special to Ngati Hau such as the river and waterfall Waiariki and the ma...

In my last post I talked about the history of Avalon Glass, based largely on the account of it by one of the founders, Greg Smith.  Greg has provided a few corrections and clarifications of the roles of some of those involved, which is much appreciated. But he has also provided an update on what he is doing now.  Not currently making glass, he has been pursuing his career as an actor, and is about to be seen in New Zealand cinemas in the new release Mt Zion (in NZ cinemas from 6 February 2013). Greg may be seen in the trailer which features on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0gHwasfR7g , and the screen captures shown here are drawn from there. Greg plays a promoter who auditions the wannabe Bob Marleys who are the centrepiece of the story - 'some sort of welcoming party for Captain Cook and his Endeavours' is a memorable line. I know little about the film other than I have seen in the trailer, but you may be sure I'll be going to see it, and not just to see this ...

Recently I bought on TradeMe, from my usual supplier of Taranaki glass goodies, a paperweight.  It’s a good piece, well made, but what especially attracted my attention was the signature.  It seemed to be clearly signe d J. Leggott ’81 N.Z. Now what made that interesting is that the story goes (not the least as provided by John Leggott in an interview in the Taranaki Herald in 1988) that there was this New Plymouth potter called John Leggott, who had previously been potting in North Queensland and fishing on the Barrier Reef. He saw the Pacific Glass ‘83 exhibition at the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery in New Plymouth, in 1983, and was so impressed by the wonder of glass that he set up his own glass studio at his pottery workshop in Kellyville Heights, Merrilands in New Plymouth.  There are four pieces in Stuart Park’s glass collection signed J. Leggott ’85, so one would assume they were relatively early pieces John made there. But my friendly TradeMe supplier was quite ...

Recently I had a very enjoyable extended road trip to the South Island, culminating on my way back home with participation in the AGM and Conference of the New Zealand Society of Artists in Glass and the Wanganui Festival of Glass. While my trip was about more than only glass, I did explore all sorts of exhibitions, collections and installations which offered me many new experiences in glass, yielded a lot of new information and offered me a number of opportunities to add to my collection. I'm planning to share the results of that trip in my blog over the next few weeks.   I don't propose to tell you what these rather varied images are - all will be revealed in forthcoming posts

Here's another group of New Zealand glass artists, taken ten years on from the NZSAG Inglewood conference photos I posted recently. Peter Viesnik mentioned the photo in an email discussing the Inglewood blog.  Entitled 'Garry and team 1993', the image is on Garry Nash's website at http://www.garrynash.co.nz/crew93.htm . I have viewed it there a number of times, and Garry kindly gave me a digital copy a couple of years ago.  But I was intrigued to realise that although Garry is easy to identify, punty in hand with a piece at the marver, I wasn't sure who any of the others might be.  Some looked a little familiar, but it was nineteen years ago, and I couldn't be certain. From left, this group of workers at Garry Nash's Sunbeam Glass studio in 1993 were: John Penman, Judy from Sweden (note the Orrefors T-shirt), Stephen Bradbourne, Garry Nash, Lynette Campbell, Hoana Stachl holding a piece of glass, John a visiting house painter (do you know where Garry's l...

My former colleagues at NZ Historic Places Trust banded together and gave me a wonderful gift to mark my retirement recently.  How they came to select it is a closely guarded secret, but their choice was spot on.  It's a stained glass piece by Northland glass artist Kathy Shaw-Urlich. (I posted a blog about another work of Kathy's I have in July 2011).    The piece is entitled Tokerau Matariki and was first shown in an exhibition of work to mark Matariki (the Maori New Year) at The Herb Shack in Kaitaia in June.  It seems to me it is a highly appropriate retirement gift for several reasons.  Firstly, its a piece of New Zealand glass, by an artist whose work I love.  Secondly, it speaks of Te Tai Tokerau, Northland, where I have worked for for NZ Historic Places Trust for the last thirteen years, and where I intend to continue living, in retirement.  Thirdly, it speaks of Matariki, a time of new beginnings as we start the new year, highly appropri...

I made use of my newly retired person's new-found leisure time last week to visit Evelyn Dunstan's exhibition Influence at Orexart Gallery in Auckland.  This is the first time I have seen a whole exhibition of Evelyn's work (she doesn't often show in New Zealand), and I was just amazed.   Her work is intricate in the extreme, achieving complexities in the form and colour of the glass that boggle the mind.  My reaction to the exhibition was a mixture of appreciation of its sheer beauty, with an intellectual curiosity as to how on earth she manages to achieve these forms technically.  I know it has to do with sophisticated casting materials, but it has more to do with inspiration, creativity, tenacity, perseverance and sheer hard work. Eve lyn's website ( http://www.evelyndunstan.co.nz/about/bio/) tells us that she started glass casting in 2003 after 25 years as a graphic artist, designer and illustrator, combining a full time career with raising 4 children. In 200...