The installation brings together works by renowned international artists who have contributed to the development of contemporary glass art in major centers throughout the world. View unique aesthetic properties in figurative works by artists Micaela Amateau Amato, Karen LaMonte, and Seth Randal. Study sizeable sculptures by Howard Ben Tré, Daniel Clayman, and Bertil Vallien. Masters of the mold-making and casting processes include Vladimira Klumpar and Ivana Šrámková. Other artists shape and fuse their works by the heat of a kiln. Matthew Curtis and Lino Tagliapietra apply cold-working techniques to their hand-blown glass forms. Dale Chihuly, Benjamin Moore, and William Morris are among the world’s leading glass blowers. Other artists like Larry Bell and Therman Statom merge formal investigations of color, space, and light with social and cultural commentary.

For more than forty years, connections between Australia and the Pacific Northwest have been forged through
the relationships of artists, educational institutions, and entrepreneurs through the medium of glass. Brought together by a shared passion for glass, artists from both countries have developed long lasting and deeply influential relationships. These connections have made significant impacts on both continents forming unique “links” between Australian and American studio glass movements.

LINKS is the first museum exhibition in the United States dedicated to the wide spectrum of Australian studio glass and the connection between artists and institutions in Australia and the Pacific Northwest. This is an overdue project given the excellent quality of work being produced and its prominence in important American public and private collections. Approximately four artworks each from an impressive list of twenty-three Australian and four American artists comprise this exhibition for a total of ninety-two works.

The exhibition explores an international network of influences and exchanges that began in the mid-1970s and tells two related stories about the development of Australian studio glass and its connection with American artists and technology. The first narrative focuses on the technical and stylistic innovations in fused, cast, and cold worked glass in which Australians excel in, while the second section centers on blown (hot) glass that is prevalent in the Pacific Northwest.

The presentation traces the history of these exchanges and the work of the current generation of remarkable contemporary Australian glass artists who share its lineage and are achieving recognition throughout the world. They are not merely repeating age old glass-making traditions – they have re-invented them as a vehicle for new contemporary creative expression.
We invite you to explore this exhibition and find your own links to these amazing artists. Works by Australian artists Clare Belfrage, Giles Bettison, Gabriella Bisetto, Jane Bruce, Scott Chaseling, Cobi Cockburn, Nadège Desgenétez, Mel Douglas, Ben Edols/Kathy Elliott, Tim Edwards, Brenden Scott French, Mel George, Jeremy Lepisto, Jessica Loughlin, Klaus Moje, Tom Moore, Nick Mount, Stephen Procter, Kirstie Rea, Tom Rowney, Janice Vitkovsky, and Richard Whiteley are shown with works by American artists Steve Klein, Dante Marioni, Richard Marquis, and April Surgent.

Videos featuring artists working in their studios and discussing the various glass processes will play continuously in the gallery. Accompanying the exhibition is a 176-page catalog published by the Museum of Glass in association with the University of Washington Press with essays by curator Vicki Halper from Seattle; Grace Cochrane from Sydney; Margot Osborne from Adelaide; and Lani McGregor from Bullseye Glass in Portland, Oregon.

LINKS: Australian Glass and the Pacific Northwest has been organized by Museum of Glass, Tacoma, WA. Sponsored by Ben B. Cheney Foundation, this project has been assisted by the Australian Government through the Australia Council for the Arts, its arts funding and advisory body; Australian National University-Canberra, School of Art; David Kaplan and Glenn Ostergaard; Craft Australia; Bullseye Glass Company; and Robert Lehman Foundation.

The Palm Springs showing is funded in part by David Kaplan and Glenn Ostergaard, Gilbert and Thelma Schnitzer Fund, the Contemporary Art Council and its Platinum Sponsors Rebecca Benaroya and Phyllis and Gary Schahet, Gold Sponsors Marguerite and David M. Wilson, Silver Sponsors Carol Bell-Dean and Edward Dean, and Candice Connell and Barry W. Morse.
Exhibition Season Sponsors: Dorothy and Harold J. Meyerman and Arlene Schnitzer
 
The fully illustrated catalogue for this exhibition is available for purchase at PSAM Museum Store: 760-322-4830
Art works are drawn from the museum’s permanent collection and on loan from artists and private collectors.
This exhibition is organized by the Palm Springs Art Museum and is funded in part by Rebecca Benaroya.

The Palm Springs Art Museum is the largest cultural institution in the Coachella Valley and includes three locations in Palm Springs and Palm Desert. The flagship building is located in downtown Palm Springs and features compelling art exhibitions and a vast permanent collection, all on view in a 150,000 square foot, architecturally-significant building. The soon-to-open Architecture and Design Center will feature exhibitions and programming that explore the rich topics of architecture and design. The Palm Springs Art Museum in Palm Desert is an 8,400 square foot, Silver LEED-certified building named The Galen that presents changing exhibitions and collections. It is surrounded by the four-acre Faye Sarkowsky Sculpture Garden that features more than ten important sculpture works.
 
Museum hours:
Palm Desert: Closed Monday, Tuesday / 10 a.m. - 5 p.m., Wednesday / 10 a.m. - 5 p.m., Thursday / 10 a.m. - 5 p.m., Friday / 12 p.m. - 8 p.m., Saturday / 10 a.m. - 5 p.m., Sunday / 10 a.m. - 5 p.m., (760) 346-5600
 
Palm Springs Art Museum
101 Museum Drive
 Palm Springs CA 92262, USA
+1 (760) 322-4800
http://www.psmuseum.org