Artist Lorraine Glessner

Lorraine Glessner - Artist Statement

Experience is never limited and it is never complete; it is an immense sensibility, a kind of huge spiderweb of the finest silken threads suspended in the chamber of consciousness and catching every airborne particle in its tissue.

- Henry James

All living things leave a physical mark, a stain or imprint through the natural cycle of creation and birth, life, growth, death, and the regeneration of life through decomposition. The cyclic nature of our bodies and earth serve to jog the mind, to remind us of the desire to seek progress within cycle, and measure that progress against the repetitive constant.

My pieces begin with layers of fabric that have been subjected to processes such as burning, rusting, decomposition, burying, or simple exposure to the elements. These processes yield patterns that evoke the body, aerial, architectural, agricultural, industrial, urban and technological landscapes. Subsequent layers of branded marks, images, paint, wax, hair, and found materials are collaged in repetitive compositions which reference ornamental and decorative patterning. The use of ornament and repetition provides rhythm and clarity as well as generates allusions to historical, psychological and cultural meanings. My recent work combines ideas of natural creation with those of man-made creation and what lies in between, such as cloning, cross-pollinization, designer babies and plastic surgery. By utilizing images of familiar decorative patterns and products from circulars, mail-order catalogs and high-end decorating magazines and combining them with images of domestic environments taken at designer trade shows, interior design centers and botanical gardens, subconscious connections are made to everyday life.

Through these connections, I am interested in raising questions concerning want vs. need, the overabundance of choice in a commercial society as well as the waste that excess produces and ultimately, what the accumulation and discarding of this waste can simultaneously create and destroy.

Resume

Group:

2006 Exhibit 3, Painted Bride Art Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2006 Nancie Mattice Emerging Artist Award Winners Exhibition, Dangenart Gallery, Nashville, Tennessee
2006 A Show of Hands Art Auction, Moore College of Art and Design, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2006 Invitational Salon Exhibition of Small Works, New Arts Program, Kutztown, Pennsylvania
2006 Dear Fleisher: Invitational Exhibition of Small Works, Fleisher Art Memorial, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2006 Sixth Annual Silent Auction, Painted Bride Art Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2006 Annual Faculty Exhibition, Peters Valley Craft Center, Layton, New Jersey
Art of the State Exhibition, The State Museum of Pennsylvania, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
2006 Goldman Properties, White Building, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2006 Elemental, Wired Gallery, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
2006 The Divas and Iron Chefs of Encaustic, SECAC/MACAA Conference Exhibition, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee
2006 Hot Wax Encaustic Exhibition, Lauryn Taylor Gallery, Carmel, California
InLiquid Silent Auction, Crane Arts Building, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2006 Across the Line, Gallery at St. Asaph’s Church, Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania
2005 Second Miniature Art Textiles Exhibit, Invitational, Ocean County Artist’s Guild, Island Heights, New Jersey
2005 A Tribute to Fiber Art, Juried Exhibition, APEX Gallery, Washington, DC
2005 Invitational Salon Exhibition of Small Works, New Arts Program, Kutztown, Pennsylvania
2005 Constants & Variables, The Surface Design Association’s Conference Membership Exhibition, Kansas City Art Institute, Kansas City, Missouri
2005 A Show of Hands Art Auction, Moore College of Art and Design, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2005 May Juried Exhibition, EP Designworks Gallery, www.epdesignworks.com
2005 CIVA Small Works Auction, Azusa Pacific University, Azusa, California
2005 Sixth Annual Silent Auction, Painted Bride Art Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2005 Annual Summer Faculty Exhibition, Peters Valley Craft Center, Layton, New Jersey
2005 Embracing the Gift, Juried Exhibition, Azusa Pacific University, Azusa, California
2005 Art by Textiles, Invitational Exhibition, The Riverfront Renaissance Center for the Arts, Millville, New Jersey
2005 From the Studio 2: Selections from the Philadelphia Open Studio Tours, The Center for Emerging Visual Artists, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2005 Across the City Line: POST Preview, Gallery at St. Asaph’s Church, Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania
2005 35th Annual Peter’s Valley Benefit Auction, Lafayette, New Jersey
2004 Fiber Artists: Philadelphia, A Juried Exhibition, DaVinci Art Alliance, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2004 Beyond the Stitch: A Regional Fiber Art Invitational, Ocean County Artist’s Guild, Island Heights, New Jersey
2004 ArtHouston, Mixed Bag Gallery Invitational, Houston, Texas
2003 My World in Black and White, Fiber and Mixed-Media Juried Online Show
2003 Images of the Body: Sacred, Personal, and Public, CIVA’s Conference Juried Exhibition, Boston, Massachusetts
2003 Next Wave, The Surface Design Association’s Conference Juried Student Competition, Kansas City Art Institute, Kansas City, Missouri
2002 Six Degrees in Cold Storage, College Art Association Juried MFA Exhibition, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1999 Embellished Truths, University of Toledo Juried Photography Exhibition, Toledo, Ohio
1999 Fine Focus, Small Quilts Juried Traveling Exhibition
1998 Annual Juried Photography Exhibit, Phillips Mill Gallery, New Hope, Pennsylvania
1998 Crossing Boundaries, Temple University Conference Art Exhibition, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1998 Exquisite Corpse, Women's Caucus for Art National Conference Exhibition, Toronto, Canada
1998 Land-Escapes, Bradley University and Peoria Art Guild Juried Digital Art Exhibition, Peoria, Illinois
1998 Manipulated Photographic Image, FACET National Juried Exhibition, Taos, New Mexic
1997 SCAN Exhibition Juried Show, Silicon Gallery, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Annual Juried Photography Exhibit, Phillips Mill Gallery, New Hope, Pennsylvania

Grants & Awards

2006 Third Place, Painting, Art of the State Exhibition, The State Museum of Pennsylvania
2006 Nancie Mattice Emerging Artist Award, Dangenart Gallery, Nashville, Tennessee
2006 Nominee, NICHE Arts Educator of the Year Award
2005 Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, Individual Creative Artist Fellowship in Crafts
2005 Nominee, NICHE Arts Educator of the Year Award
2003 Teaching Assistantship, Tyler School of Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2003 Technical/Teaching Assistantship, Tyler School of Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Collections

Barbara L Jones, Greensburg, Pennsylvania

Karey Bresenhan, Houston, Texas

Ann Hoskins-Brown, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Morgan Barlow, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Mark and Andrea Havens, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Andrea Kirsh, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Joanie San Chirico, Tom’s River, New Jersey

Geoffrey Porges, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Novartis Pharmaceuticals, East Hanover, New Jersey

Publications

2006 Watson, Lisa Crawford, Hot Wax, Monterey County Herald, GO! Magazine, September 7, 2006
2006 Surface Design Journal Gallery Issue, Volume 30, No 5 p 61, Fall
2006 Baizerman, Susan, Breaking New Ground, Surface Design Journal, Vol 30, No 5, p 9, Fall
2006 Donohoe, Victoria, State Exhibit Has Talent to Spare, Philadelphia Inquirer, July 16
2006 Slupe, Ellen, Stately Exhibitions, Art Matters, p 14, August
2006 Kirsh, Andrea, Philadelphia Introductions: Lorraine Glessner, Inliquid Commentary, Inliquid.com, October
2005 Exposure, Surface Design Journal, Volume 29, No 3, p. 55, Spring
2004 Montgomery, Susan, Fruit of the Fiber, Ocean County Observer, p C1-C2, February 29
2003 Catalog 2003-2005, Tyler School of Art, Temple University, p 18-19 and pullout section
2001 Gikow, Jacqueline, Polymer Clay: Creating Functional and Decorative Objects, Krause Publications,
New York, New York
1999 Slowinski, Tim, New Art International, Book Art Press, Ltd., New York, New York
1998 Date Book Calendar, Metacreations, Inc., Metacreations, New York, New York

Professional Experience

2003-present Tyler School of Art, Assistant Professor, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2007 Gallery Talk, Joan Derryberry Art Gallery, Tennessee Technological University, Cookeville, Tennessee
2006 Encaustic and Collage, SECAC/MACAA Conference, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee
2006 Contemporary Encaustic Techniques, Peters Valley Craft Center, Workshop Instructor, Layton, New Jersey
2006 Branding, Rusting and Encaustic on Fabric, Fiberarts Guild of Pittsburgh, Workshop Instructor, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
2005 Tyler School of Art, Acting Fiber Area Head, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2005 Composting, Encaustic & Branding, Fiberarts Guild of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
2005 Gallery Talk, Sykes Gallery, Millersville University, Millersville, Pennsylvania
2003 Experimental Drawing, Peters Valley Craft Center, Workshop Instructor, Layton, New Jersey
2003 Structural Embellishment, Tyler School of Art, Instructor, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2003 Studio Assistant, Sharyn O’Mara, Untitled (Corner), Nexxus Gallery, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2003 Studio Assistant, Sharyn O’Mara, Eagle’s Nest Project for Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2003 Studio Assistant, Astrid Bowlby, Gallery Joe Solo Show, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2003 Alternative Materials: Tyvek, Spring Open House, Tyler School of Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2003 Gallery Talk, Temple Gallery, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2002 Nicholas Kripal, Genesis Project, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2002 Polaroid Transfers on Fabric, Spring Open House, Tyler School of Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2002 Computers for Fabric Design, Tyler School of Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2001-03 Tyler School of Art, Technical Assistant, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2001-02 Tyler School of Art, Teaching Assistant, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1998-2000 Women’s Caucus for Art, Chapter Treasurer, Philadelphia Pennsylvania
1993-1998 Baker, Knapp & Tubbs, Manager/Display Artist, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania



	Lorraine Glessner - Artist Statement Experience is never limited and it is never complete; it is an immense sensibility, a kind of huge spiderweb of the finest silken threads suspended in the chamber of consciousness and catching every airborne particle in its tissue. - Henry James All living things leave a physical mark, a stain or imprint through the natural cycle of creation and birth, life, growth, death, and the regeneration of life through decomposition. The cyclic nature of our bodies and earth serve to jog the mind, to remind us of the desire to seek progress within cycle, and measure that progress against the repetitive constant. My pieces begin with layers of fabric that have been subjected to processes such as burning, rusting, decomposition, burying, or simple exposure to the elements. These processes yield patterns that evoke the body, aerial, architectural, agricultural, industrial, urban and technological landscapes. Subsequent layers of branded marks, images, paint, wax, hair, and found materials are collaged in repetitive compositions which reference ornamental and decorative patterning. The use of ornament and repetition provides rhythm and clarity as well as generates allusions to historical, psychological and cultural meanings. My recent work combines ideas of natural creation with those of man-made creation and what lies in between, such as cloning, cross-pollinization, designer babies and plastic surgery. By utilizing images of familiar decorative patterns and products from circulars, mail-order catalogs and high-end decorating magazines and combining them with images of domestic environments taken at designer trade shows, interior design centers and botanical gardens, subconscious connections are made to everyday life. Through these connections, I am interested in raising questions concerning want vs. need, the overabundance of choice in a commercial society as well as the waste that excess produces and ultimately, what the accumulation and discarding of this waste can simultaneously create and destroy. Resume Education 2003 MFA Tyler School of Art, Temple University Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Fiber 1996 Certificate of Completion, Moore College of Art and Design Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1989 BS Philadelphia University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Exhibitions Solo and Two Person: 2006 Philadelphia Open Studio Tours, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2006 Django, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2005 Philadelphia Open Studio Tours, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2005 Lorraine Glessner/Beverly Fisher, Sykes Gallery, Millersville University, Millersville, Pennsylvania 2004 The Other Journal, www.theotherjournal.com 2003 MFA Thesis Exhibition, Temple University Gallery, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1997 Roche-Bobois Showroom, Marketplace Design Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Group: 2006 Exhibit 3, Painted Bride Art Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2006 Nancie Mattice Emerging Artist Award Winners Exhibition, Dangenart Gallery, Nashville, Tennessee 2006 A Show of Hands Art Auction, Moore College of Art and Design, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2006 Invitational Salon Exhibition of Small Works, New Arts Program, Kutztown, Pennsylvania 2006 Dear Fleisher: Invitational Exhibition of Small Works, Fleisher Art Memorial, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2006 Sixth Annual Silent Auction, Painted Bride Art Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2006 Annual Faculty Exhibition, Peters Valley Craft Center, Layton, New Jersey Art of the State Exhibition, The State Museum of Pennsylvania, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 2006 Goldman Properties, White Building, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2006 Elemental, Wired Gallery, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 2006 The Divas and Iron Chefs of Encaustic, SECAC/MACAA Conference Exhibition, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee 2006 Hot Wax Encaustic Exhibition, Lauryn Taylor Gallery, Carmel, California InLiquid Silent Auction, Crane Arts Building, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2006 Across the Line, Gallery at St. Asaph’s Church, Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania 2005 Second Miniature Art Textiles Exhibit, Invitational, Ocean County Artist’s Guild, Island Heights, New Jersey 2005 A Tribute to Fiber Art, Juried Exhibition, APEX Gallery, Washington, DC 2005 Invitational Salon Exhibition of Small Works, New Arts Program, Kutztown, Pennsylvania 2005 Constants & Variables, The Surface Design Association’s Conference Membership Exhibition, Kansas City Art Institute, Kansas City, Missouri 2005 A Show of Hands Art Auction, Moore College of Art and Design, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2005 May Juried Exhibition, EP Designworks Gallery, www.epdesignworks.com 2005 CIVA Small Works Auction, Azusa Pacific University, Azusa, California 2005 Sixth Annual Silent Auction, Painted Bride Art Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2005 Annual Summer Faculty Exhibition, Peters Valley Craft Center, Layton, New Jersey 2005 Embracing the Gift, Juried Exhibition, Azusa Pacific University, Azusa, California 2005 Art by Textiles, Invitational Exhibition, The Riverfront Renaissance Center for the Arts, Millville, New Jersey 2005 From the Studio 2: Selections from the Philadelphia Open Studio Tours, The Center for Emerging Visual Artists, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2005 Across the City Line: POST Preview, Gallery at St. Asaph’s Church, Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania 2005 35th Annual Peter’s Valley Benefit Auction, Lafayette, New Jersey 2004 Fiber Artists: Philadelphia, A Juried Exhibition, DaVinci Art Alliance, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2004 Beyond the Stitch: A Regional Fiber Art Invitational, Ocean County Artist’s Guild, Island Heights, New Jersey 2004 ArtHouston, Mixed Bag Gallery Invitational, Houston, Texas 2003 My World in Black and White, Fiber and Mixed-Media Juried Online Show 2003 Images of the Body: Sacred, Personal, and Public, CIVA’s Conference Juried Exhibition, Boston, Massachusetts 2003 Next Wave, The Surface Design Association’s Conference Juried Student Competition, Kansas City Art Institute, Kansas City, Missouri 2002 Six Degrees in Cold Storage, College Art Association Juried MFA Exhibition, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1999 Embellished Truths, University of Toledo Juried Photography Exhibition, Toledo, Ohio 1999 Fine Focus, Small Quilts Juried Traveling Exhibition 1998 Annual Juried Photography Exhibit, Phillips Mill Gallery, New Hope, Pennsylvania 1998 Crossing Boundaries, Temple University Conference Art Exhibition, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1998 Exquisite Corpse, Women's Caucus for Art National Conference Exhibition, Toronto, Canada 1998 Land-Escapes, Bradley University and Peoria Art Guild Juried Digital Art Exhibition, Peoria, Illinois 1998 Manipulated Photographic Image, FACET National Juried Exhibition, Taos, New Mexic 1997 SCAN Exhibition Juried Show, Silicon Gallery, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Annual Juried Photography Exhibit, Phillips Mill Gallery, New Hope, Pennsylvania Grants & Awards 2006 Third Place, Painting, Art of the State Exhibition, The State Museum of Pennsylvania 2006 Nancie Mattice Emerging Artist Award, Dangenart Gallery, Nashville, Tennessee 2006 Nominee, NICHE Arts Educator of the Year Award 2005 Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, Individual Creative Artist Fellowship in Crafts 2005 Nominee, NICHE Arts Educator of the Year Award 2003 Teaching Assistantship, Tyler School of Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2003 Technical/Teaching Assistantship, Tyler School of Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Collections Barbara L Jones, Greensburg, Pennsylvania Karey Bresenhan, Houston, Texas Ann Hoskins-Brown, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Morgan Barlow, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Mark and Andrea Havens, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Andrea Kirsh, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Joanie San Chirico, Tom’s River, New Jersey Geoffrey Porges, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Novartis Pharmaceuticals, East Hanover, New Jersey Publications 2006 Watson, Lisa Crawford, Hot Wax, Monterey County Herald, GO! Magazine, September 7, 2006 2006 Surface Design Journal Gallery Issue, Volume 30, No 5 p 61, Fall 2006 Baizerman, Susan, Breaking New Ground, Surface Design Journal, Vol 30, No 5, p 9, Fall 2006 Donohoe, Victoria, State Exhibit Has Talent to Spare, Philadelphia Inquirer, July 16 2006 Slupe, Ellen, Stately Exhibitions, Art Matters, p 14, August 2006 Kirsh, Andrea, Philadelphia Introductions: Lorraine Glessner, Inliquid Commentary, Inliquid.com, October 2005 Exposure, Surface Design Journal, Volume 29, No 3, p. 55, Spring 2004 Montgomery, Susan, Fruit of the Fiber, Ocean County Observer, p C1-C2, February 29 2003 Catalog 2003-2005, Tyler School of Art, Temple University, p 18-19 and pullout section 2001 Gikow, Jacqueline, Polymer Clay: Creating Functional and Decorative Objects, Krause Publications, New York, New York 1999 Slowinski, Tim, New Art International, Book Art Press, Ltd., New York, New York 1998 Date Book Calendar, Metacreations, Inc., Metacreations, New York, New York Professional Experience 2003-present Tyler School of Art, Assistant Professor, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2007 Gallery Talk, Joan Derryberry Art Gallery, Tennessee Technological University, Cookeville, Tennessee 2006 Encaustic and Collage, SECAC/MACAA Conference, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee 2006 Contemporary Encaustic Techniques, Peters Valley Craft Center, Workshop Instructor, Layton, New Jersey 2006 Branding, Rusting and Encaustic on Fabric, Fiberarts Guild of Pittsburgh, Workshop Instructor, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 2005 Tyler School of Art, Acting Fiber Area Head, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2005 Composting, Encaustic & Branding, Fiberarts Guild of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 2005 Gallery Talk, Sykes Gallery, Millersville University, Millersville, Pennsylvania 2003 Experimental Drawing, Peters Valley Craft Center, Workshop Instructor, Layton, New Jersey 2003 Structural Embellishment, Tyler School of Art, Instructor, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2003 Studio Assistant, Sharyn O’Mara, Untitled (Corner), Nexxus Gallery, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2003 Studio Assistant, Sharyn O’Mara, Eagle’s Nest Project for Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2003 Studio Assistant, Astrid Bowlby, Gallery Joe Solo Show, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2003 Alternative Materials: Tyvek, Spring Open House, Tyler School of Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2003 Gallery Talk, Temple Gallery, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2002 Nicholas Kripal, Genesis Project, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2002 Polaroid Transfers on Fabric, Spring Open House, Tyler School of Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2002 Computers for Fabric Design, Tyler School of Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2001-03 Tyler School of Art, Technical Assistant, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2001-02 Tyler School of Art, Teaching Assistant, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1998-2000 Women’s Caucus for Art, Chapter Treasurer, Philadelphia Pennsylvania 1993-1998 Baker, Knapp & Tubbs, Manager/Display Artist, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania





represented artists \| guest artists \| current exhibitions \| future exhibitions \| past exhibitions \| future events \| past events \| class info \| class schedules \| class registration \| hours \| submissions \| employment \| contact