Angelo Vases

aka “DIY Baroviers”

    This series started back in 2022 inspired by an image of an object by Angelo Barovier from 1952 titled "Sculptural Vase with Eyes.” Knowing I'll likely never see that object in real life, let alone hold it, I decided to make my own versions of it. Kind of like a cover song. I used it as a springboard to practice different bit applications such as handles and wraps on a vessel form, and play with using the eye as a motif. This also allowed me to blur the line between function and sculpture, a territory I have always been interested in.
    Since moving to Okinawa, these objects have evolved. Being a foreigner in a new place has definitely brought on the gaze, which at times can be playful, but is usually quite jarring. And so over time, in thinking about it, these objects take a little bit of that “gaijin gaze” and flip it back. It doesn’t make me feel less like an alien, but I enjoy making each new iteration different than the last. With most of my object works, I want them to hold many visual references and sensibilities.
    Glass is interesting because there is another line, adjacent to the one between function and sculpture, between looking and touching. Things like textures and handles invite touch, but sometimes the uncertainty of function and maybe the price tag invite only looking. Objects are fun like that. They can be powerful and inspirational stimuli to the space they occupy.
    Some of the mid-20th century Italian glass has a certain lure to it; beautiful and clunky, refined yet choppy. These are my own observations after looking at hundreds of objects from the time period. Which, for a maker, these notes have given me great permission to “DIY” my own beautiful, clunky objects. And to have fun with all of the hot bits!