Artist of the Month
May 2023
Mary Shaffer
Mary Shaffer is recognized as an important early influence in the American Studio Glass Movement. In the 1970s, she developed an original technique which she named “mid-air slumping.” It allows her to use gravity to soften plate glass into a form, which she often combines with found metal objects, old tools, or fabricated forms. Shaffer is represented by Sculpturesite Gallery, Glen Ellen, California.
Click on each photo to the right for a full picture.
Southern Sunset, 2011; 24 x 25 x 8 inches; slumped glass and metal
Parts of solo show Reflections and Contradiction (Wall of Tools) at the Katzen Art Center, American University Museum, Washington DC, in 2014
Red Through, 2016; 35 x 7 x 9 inches; slumped glass and found metal
Water Lines, 2006; 25 x 24 x 8 inches; slumped glass and metal
Variation in a Cube, 1997; 60 x 26 x 21 inches; slumped glass and metal
Clear Wave, 1990s; 30 x 30 x 10 inches; slumped glass and metal
Corner Rope, 2023; 36 x 13 x 24 inches; hot glass and metal
Mary Shaffer
Artist Statement:
The fundamental philosophy behind my work is to use gravity, the strongest unknown force in the universe. I call this working with the "female principle" in the Jungian sense - the idea of yielding and joining forces with nature, versus the 19th-century attitude of dominating nature.
I like to revitalize forgotten tools found in junk yards and flea markets, often hand forged. The work speaks of a time when people were self-sufficient with a strong connection to the land. The work reminds us that we've lost an empathetic understanding of nature and of knowing that our stewardship of the earth is paramount to our continued survival as a species.
About Mary Shaffer
Mary Shaffer has been sculpting with glass for over 50 years. She is recognized as an important early influence in the American Studio Glass Movement. In the 1970s, she developed an original technique which she named “mid-air slumping.” It allows her to use gravity to soften plate glass into a form, which she often combines with found metal objects, old tools, or fabricated forms. This process moves plate glass with a fluidity and freedom that cannot be created with a mold.
Shaffer’s sculptures range in scale from small objects to room-size installations and public works of more than 50 feet high and 3 tons. She also creates work using stone, light, fire, fiber-optics, sound, and performance. Her work has been exhibited throughout the globe and is in the permanent collections of The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York; The Museum of Modern Art in Kyoto, Japan; The Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC; Museum of Decorative Arts in Lausanne, Switzerland; and Museum Bellerive in Zurich, Switzerland, among others.
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Acknowledgment of Gallery:
We are grateful to Sculpturesite Gallery, Glen Ellen, California, for providing the Artist of the Month.
The Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to further the development and appreciation of art made from glass.
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