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Seekers presents the work of Valerie Surjan, who
creates distinctive, engraved designs on handblown glass vases, bowls, scent
vials and sculptural works.
Surjan's engraved designs are all original and
usually involve flowers, fruits and other botanical subjects or, more recently,
a series of African Wildlife compositions.
The vases on which she creates her etchings are
individually handblown for her by
California
glass artist Michael Nourot. These
"blank" vases are usually blown in three layers of glass, with white
sandwiched between two thick layers of opaque color.
The process she uses dates back to the 1870s
and involves high pressure etching with fine grain garnet.
The work is tedious -- a large vase may require 30 hours or more to
complete -- and risky, since one mistake can destroy a piece.
Surjan begins by masking the entire piece with
pressure resistant tape, onto which she draws her design in precise detail.
Although she may repeat themes, each work is unique, having been created
to fit the particular color and shape of the blank vase.
Using special blades, she cuts each line of the
design, and then removes sections of tape one at a time.
The engraving begins with those areas to be most deeply cut and
progresses to those details which entail only a light surface frosting.
Occasionally she uses an auxiliary process such as gold leafing or
enameling to accent a design.
Finally, each vase is signed, dated and
registered by number.
Surjan earned her Bachelors degree in Art from
State
University
College
,
Buffalo
,
New York
, and studied art in
Siena
,
Italy
. She was a glass designer with
Orient and Flume Art Glass Co. prior to establishing her own
Northern California
studio in 1978.
Her works are included in numerous public and
private collections, including those of actress Carol Burnett and athlete Moses
Malone, and have been exhibited at major museums throughout the
United States
, including The Smithsonian's
Renwick Museum
,
Washington
, D.C., and in
Japan
.
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