Past and Future:
Eric Hopkins-glass drawings: August 2008
Emily Leonard-paintings: Sept 2008
Martin Kremer-Glass: Oct 2008
Tracy Johnson-jewelry: May 2008
Benjamin Lambert-clay: Jan 2009

Nov 7 - 29, 2008

Ben Coombs: Squarely Afloat

Artist Reception: First Friday, Nov 7, 5 - 8 pm

Ben Coombs worked for several years in the most highly - respected hot shop in Seattle. America ? not Italy - is the center of the International Studio Glass Movement, and Seattle is America's center for glassblowing. To have blown glass with the likes of Dante Marioni, Benjamin Moore, Richard Royal and the others who work at Ben Moore's studio in Seattle's International District is just a dream for most American glass artists. For several years, it was Ben Coombs's vocation. His life. The Pilchuck Glass School ? founded by Dale Chihuly and the Haubergs in 1971 ? is the closest many glass artists can get; and to be selected for a session at Pilchuck is a life-changing experience for many who aspire to be glass artists. Ben Coombs was on the staff of the Pilchuck Glass School for several years and even set up the school?s current coldworking studio.

Ben Coombs is from Woolwich, Maine, and so while he could have stayed and worked with the community in Seattle, he set out on his own and opened the Portland Glassblowing Studio in his native Maine.

Coombs has an enviable glassblowing resume ? and an even more enviable range of skills. Few glass artists in the world have Coombs's confident range of abilities, and even fewer are able to put such a range to work in their own sculptural production. Coombs has made quite a name for himself with his glass lobster buoys: precise Italian technique featuring clearly controlled multiple incalmo (aka "double bubble") centers ? showpieces of symmetry and skill combined with deeply seasoned knowledge of Maine's nautical culture (Coombs seems to have pretty much grown up on the water). Yet the buoys stand proudly next to hot-sculpted (made on the pipe, but not blown) elements of nautical hardware: thematically and visually consistent though hardly more disparate from the technical point of view.

For Squarely Afloat, Coombs's third exhibition with Daniel Kany Gallery, the Maine artist is introducing several new series of work: from Square Knot Goblets (thoroughly Italian technique with a square knot stem) to a series of sculpturally ambitious and sophisticated figurative mermaids. Coombs is also introducing a new series of 30 smaller half-buoys ? which look as though they are floating. To wit, Coombs grew up on the water , and his knowledge of Maine's coastal culture is deep and real: His mermaids, for example, have much more to do with Maine lore than Walt Disney.

Because of his range, Coombs has been able to think in terms of his desired subjects and imagined designs, rather than remaining within the limitations of his craft. This allows him the unusual ability to deliver exhibitions and bodies of work that are sculpturally coherent while technically expansive. For those familiar with the ins and outs of glass art, Coombs's exhibitions are impressive for his incredible technique, design, innovation and creativity, in addition to his amazing range. For those less familiar with glass art, Coombs's shows can be downright misleading: Viewers can wrongly get the idea that glass can do anything ? easily or even at will. Neither of these responses rattles Ben Coombs ? a Mainer through and through : "It can be seen as sculpture. It can be seen as glass. It can be seen in the context of Maine art and culture. I can't control what the viewer brings to the table, and I don't want to. I can only do my part as well as possible and hope that enough people respond strongly enough."

With Squarely Afloat, Coombs furthers his sculptural meditations on Maine coastal and nautical culture. "There seems to be a natural affinity somehow between the blown glass and the coastal imagery," notes gallery owner and Director Daniel Kany: "Maybe it's the fact that sand and glass are largely the same material. Maybe it's the idea of the glass vessel as container for water or air to float. But sometimes I think it's just Ben, since boats, fishing and sailing on the Maine coast are as much part of his being as his art and being a glass artist. Either way, he authentically brings the cultures of glass and Maine art together with a native's passion and a master's hand. It?s amazing work."

Squarely Afloat will be on view at the Daniel Kany gallery through November 29, 2008.

For more information and publication-quality images, please contact Daniel Kany.