Discover the enchanting world of Jamie Harris, where molten glass transforms into vibrant, kaleidoscopic sculptures that defy the boundaries of color and light. As we welcome his mesmerizing works to Whistler Contemporary Gallery, Jamie takes us on a journey through his creative process, inspirations, and the magic that brings his art to life.
Check Out Jamie's Works HERE
Your glass art feels like it's captured moments of light and color in motion. What first sparked your fascination with this luminous medium? The vibrant hues and swirling forms in your pieces seem almost otherworldly. Where do you draw inspiration for these enchanting designs?
So much of my work is defined by my love of the process. The work is most successful for me when I can capture in the final piece that flow that is part of the complex dance of the glassblowing process, and the way the 2000-degree colors glow and mutate while cooling as you shape the glass at the furnace. My work has long involved layering color in the hotshop, using a complex glassblowing technique where one colored bubble is overlaid over another, and my love of that process and of the fluid motion that the color fields exhibit when molded and shaped at 2000 degrees drove me to develop the Infusion series. My goal is to create a sophisticated abstract painting in 3-dimensional color that captures and conveys the way molten glass transmits color. I constantly look for inspiration, often in paintings, but I try to keep my color thoughts fluid. I often come into the studio with a planned impression of how I want to build a piece, but allow the vagaries of the hot-working process to help direct my final decisions.
Glass is a notoriously tricky medium to master. How do you transform this challenging material into such fluid, magical creations?
I have been fortunate to have been working in glass since I was a teenager; the craft of glassblowing is a never-ending exploration of technique. An Italian maestro I worked with once told me that “a lifetime is not enough,” but glassblowing is a team endeavour: all of my complex work is done at the furnace with a team of amazing artists that I collaborate with in the fabrication of my work.
Each of your sculptures seems to tell a unique story. Can you walk us through the mystical journey of bringing one of your visions to life?
The process begins with rule-breaking! My Infusion pieces are painterly sculptures that draw on the technical processes of glassblowing and kiln-casting, in a way that merges these two fields to explore my painterly vision. Glassblowing and glass-casting are such different techniques, with such different technical requirements that they traditionally use different types of glass. My innovation was in shaping the glass at the furnace, to capture in the glass the movement of the molten glassblowing process, and then use the resulting glass solid element as the source of my final cast piece. I have had a long learning curve in trying to predict how the color fields will move in the 2nd heat treatment, and a lot of scientific experimentation to determine what colors will work. Some pieces don’t survive the process—the glass used in glassblowing isn’t designed to be melted again in a kiln, and as a result some colors cause cracking and other failures. Each piece is a process of trial and experimentation that begins with sketches of color and is explored through the making process in the studio.
When people gaze into your kaleidoscopic glass works, what spellbinding emotions or thoughts do you hope they experience?
For me, colors have emotional resonance, and I constantly seeking to combine them in ways that convey an abstract and strongly emotive feeling. My color sensibility changes constantly—the way I approach a new piece now will be different than even a year ago. My work is about capturing the color, light, and fluid movement of the glassblowing process, exploring the innate way glass transmits, reflects, and absorbs color, and creating painterly visions that convey emotion.
Jamie Harris’s work is a symphony of color, light, and fluidity, a testament to his mastery of glassblowing and artistic vision. We are thrilled to showcase his stunning creations at Whistler Contemporary Gallery and invite you to immerse yourself in the luminous beauty of his art. If you're captivated by his work, consider commissioning a custom piece that reflects your unique vision. Contact us to learn more!
Check Out All the Pieces by Jamie HERE
