Santa Fe, NM.- The Jane Sauer Gallery is proud to present “Chuck Savoie: Pattern and Light” on view at the gallery from September 9th through October 11th. Glass blowing as a manipulation technique for creating functional and decorative glass has been around since Phoenician times. Actual tools identifiable as relating to glass blowing have been found in excavations dating back to around 50BC. These show the use of a clay blowing tube – the precursors of the steel blowpipes used in the glassblowing of today. While the blowpipe method of glass formation (or free blowing tube method, as it can sometimes be referred to) spread throughout the world, it was the Venetians – particularly on the Island of Murano – who developed it to the highly decorative and colorful art form of today. From as long ago as the 13th Century, Murano has ranked as the finest art center for glassblowing in the world.
Many artists from the United States and other countries have traveled to learn from these masters over the ages up to the present. Chuck Savoie is one of these artists who has been fortunate enough to study closely with Lino Tagliapietra, the most renowned of contemporary Murano glass artists. Savoie studied in a number of studios while in Murano where he learned the magical formulas for color frequently keep secret except for the glass artists born into the families of Murano.
Chuck Savoie’s complex, layered and patterned glass is the result of thirty years of exploration both in the United States and Italy. He incorporates ancient Italian techniques aided by his extensive education in art, chemistry and math. His under graduate education in art included sculpture, foundry work and glass. This was further enhanced by receiving a Master’s Degree in Chemistry from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI. He combines a very rare combination of academic study and learning from the mind and hand of great masters who have a tradition of mentorship. Savoie’s understanding of chemistry has given him mastery of two ancient and difficult techniques, Zanfirico, twisted cane, and Reticello, the most difficult of Italian techniques. Savoie places one set of twisted cane into another catching a small air bubble in each diamond made by the opposing lines. His understanding of the properties of glass has given him the ability to make glass that can have very precise minute lines. This skill makes his patterns not only masterful, but beautiful. Savoie’s goblets are reminiscent of the Italian traditional methods of creating goblets brought into contemporary glass methodology. Each is different and he is constantly making new forms and colors. Savoie might consider a grouping of 3 or more glasses together and has at times created a set of goblets to be used at one time in a table setting. Most often, the viewer creates their own artistic scenario by putting together a collection of goblets having forms and colors that complement one another.
The wall artworks are sculptural amplifications of both shape and color using three dimensional glass objects mounted on the wall with bronze fittings wrapping around the forms and performing as part of the glass and part of structure. They make a dance together on the wall. The glass and intricate patterns within the pieces are integrated with light to make a painting on the wall in dynamic play of light and reflection. Savoie uses these site specific installations to explore personal themes. They might be playful, peaceful, humorous, dramatic or a combination of ideas and emotions. There is always an opening for the viewer to make an interpretation. In “In a Fine Spring Day”, beautiful colors of cut and finely polished glass open to interior patterns. The pieces sprint across the wall, casting shadows, creating an ever changing play of form and color. “Passairean” is relaxed semicircle of delicate shades of blue dropping glass elements. Within each piece is a pattern of yellow and clear glass revealed here and there by cutting through the glass shape. The bronze fitting embrace each piece and create a pattern independently.
The Jane Sauer Gallery is known for its excellent reputation among art admirers, collectors, museum curators, art critics, and artists. Jane brings to the gallery 34 years of wide experience as a highly recognized professional in art. She is known nationally by museum curators and collectors for her work as an innovative studio artist, and is often requested to serve as guest judge or curator for exhibitions. Artists and collectors throughout the country continue to seek her advice and remember her for her continuous activism in promotion of the arts. Jane brings her lifelong experience, training, and artistic eye to bear on the selection of artists she represents in the gallery. Her selection process is rigorous: “I seek to present work that is conceptually sound, meaningful, and captures the essence of intellect and creativity. Although each work must be technically accomplished, I look for a quality in the work that reveals ‘the hand of the artist’.” Throughout her long career, Jane Sauer has been at the forefront in supporting creative artists who are not limited–in their vision or in the materials they use: “The field of art is ever-expanding, limited only by the range of the human imagination. Contemporary artists are redefining our notion of art, creating a fluid field that is not tied to traditionally recognized techniques or media.” Visit the gallery’s website at … http://www.jsauergallery.com