Venice. 3 Visions in Glass is the first exhibition of glass at the Nelson-Atkins in our 75+ year history. It features the objects of three of the leading artists working in glass today, Cristiano Bianchin, Yoichi Ohira and Laura de Santillana.
Venice is a city associated with water so it is fitting that the exhibit has numerous aquatic connotations. When I walked into gallery L8, my first thought was of floating islands of glass. Unlike paintings hung on the wall, this is very much a three-dimensional exhibition. As you move from one display to another, you must navigate your path through these islands.
My attention was immediately drawn to three of de Santillana’s Flags. The flattened, minimal forms are sophisticated and elegant. Undulating fields of color float on top of one another reminding me of Mark Rothko’s color field paintings. As sculptures, de Santillana’s works add the three-dimensional quality that Rothko’s paintings are unable to capture. The Flags are simply stunning.
Another group of works by de Santillana, called Bodhis, were inspired by the prayer stance of Buddhist monks. These objects sit directly in a bed of sand. They are short and squat with rounded bottoms that would seem to rock back and forth as if they are bending low in prayer. For me, they resembled figures bobbing in water.
Clearly, (no pun intended) I was quite taken with de Santillana’s works. Her other figures, called Meteors, felt a little more organic than the Flags and Bodhis. The globular shape evokes a dynamic form that seems to be inflating and deflating, perhaps even breathing.
The works of Yoichi Ohira are located mainly in the Contemporary Decorative Art cases along the gallery walk. His objects begin with a traditional vase structure but he gives it a modern twist softening the form with bends and curves in the silhouette. Many of them are clear glass with beautiful incised (inciso in Italian) details but the ones that caught my eye were his Calle vases.
The Calles are rendered in brilliant colors that imitate semi-precious stones. At first, I thought the pieces were clear glass that had been painted with vivid, impressionistic brushstrokes of yellow, blue, red and green. Then I began to notice the textures and surfaces of the colors and realized they are facets of the glass.
I found the works by Cristiano Bianchin to be less ethereal and more functional. His repeated use of the urn shape made me think of furniture or decorative household items.
Some are covered with fabric; others are nestled in a bed of peat. For me, his work was interesting but less about the beauty of the glass than how he transforms it.
Be sure to see the exhibition and decide for yourself. Vencie. 3 Visions in Glass is on view through August 15. Admission is free.