Lin McJunkin plays with
glass, metals and high heat to create lively images that hang
in windows or on walls. Several examples of her finished work
with be on display during the Open Studio Tour. She will also
demonstrate how she combines copper foil tape, solder and
the heat of a kiln to give vivid life to the ideas and impressions
she collects on her world travels.
Artist Statement:
Working with hard-edged
glass and metal challenges my ability to translate ideas,
emotions, and impressions into strong yet supple visual statements
that celebrate life’s wonders and protest its injustices.
The glass images are affected
by the constant interplay with light on and through them,
which I find intriguing. This interaction enhances the colors,
shapes, and textures of the images. The glass/light interplay
also continually alters the viewer’s experience of the
piece. While light may damage other art forms, it is a crucial
element that enlivens my work. In essence, I design with light,
with constantly changing results.
I currently work in two
different but related glass methods. In the first method,
I use copper foil, solder, and the heat of a soldering iron
to attach the individual cut glass pieces together. Each glass
piece is supported by copper foil metalwork, often highlighting
fused glass inclusions and resulting in an open, lacy look
that resembles mosaic work without the grout.
In my newer method, I
use the heat of a kiln to fuse the cut glass pieces to the
background glass and to each other in multiple layers. The
kiln is programmed to heat slowly to 1300-1600 degrees, depending
on how much I want the pieces to melt into each other. Then
the kiln is slowly brought down in stages to room temperature.
This method can also result in a mosaic-like effect, but without
the metalwork.
Both methods feature loosely
flowing patterns of color with unframed, freeform borders.
This uniquely jazzy style has evolved from 34 years of improvisation
and experimentation with design and technique.
Much of my inspiration
comes to me during my extended travels, most recently in Latin
America, Southeast Asia, and India. My interpretations of
the stories I hear and the little dramas of human errors,
tragedies, and foibles I witness often find their way into
my work.
Thus, the fractured quality
of my art glass mosaics mirrors the fragmented aspects of
the complex world in which we all live. But the individual
glass pieces in my work are also securely unified by lacy
metalwork or fused into a delicate and coherent whole. This
reflects the holistic approaches needed to resolve the social
and environmental problems of our time.
I consider my work a success
when it seduces viewers with its beauty, then teases their
brains with an ironic framing of the soothing lie I consider
my current rendition of “The Truth.”
For more information,
please contact me at mcjunkin@olypen.com
