Just before I left Portland for North Lands, our Research & Education team embarked on the much-anticipated 6-week working session with Klaus Moje to assist him in producing an unprecedented series of glass panels for his summer 2008 exhibition at the Portland Art Museum.
Moments before getting on the plane at Heathrow to return to Portland I received this emailed souvenir of Klaus’s most recent time at Bullseye.
OK…move the kids! I can’t see the Grand Canyon:
Thousands of hand-cut strips, about a half ton of glass, an enthusiastic crew on a memorable journey….with the gentleman who brought kiln-glass from a small “niche” in northern Germany to a factory in Portland, Oregon to Canberra, Australia, and ultimately to the attention of the world.
Come see it, him, and us in Portland next summer during GAS 2008.
It’s good to be home.
——————
PS. I’m adding these shots (Thanks, Klaus!) for Dan (below) who asked to see close-ups, which we don’t really have yet. But, instead….
Here’s a panel being built on the kiln bed.
Here’s a panel after firing (and before grinding)
And here’s a detail of some particularly cool parts: the black and clear/white streaky strips that (in real life) have a sort of ambiguous strength that comes out of the black graphic interwoven with the misty clear….sigh.
July 15th, 2007 at 10:41 am
welcome back. If you have a close up of that wall of glass it would be great to see it! It looks intriguing.
July 15th, 2007 at 11:33 am
Dan, I’ve added some process shots. It’s a challenge to capture the details. Take my word for it - they’re quite wonderful. - Lani
July 15th, 2007 at 12:46 pm
wowwww! only NOW I understand the dimensions! compliments to Klaus and to the studio!
silvia
July 15th, 2007 at 7:17 pm
So, can you give names to all those yahoos in the picture up there? It’s always fun saying, “OH! I had no idea that ????? looked like THAT!”
Gary
July 15th, 2007 at 11:52 pm
For you, Gary, sure…
L to R: Mark, Tom, Jaclyn, Ted, Klaus, Louis, Nathan, Erik, Paul.
Lani
July 16th, 2007 at 7:10 am
So, Ted is the only one that gets a gen-ew-ine Lab Coat? Or… is that a rotating coat?
I think one of the things I really liked when I visited you folks was seeing the setups for super-large pieces. For me it’s a wonderful synthesis of engineering (my background) and art (what I love).
July 16th, 2007 at 7:29 am
Gary, actually the coat is pretty stable. It’s Ted who rotates.
-L
July 16th, 2007 at 1:56 pm
Do you have photos of the original sketches? Or were these put together by the seat of the pants?
July 16th, 2007 at 2:14 pm
Bert, Klaus doesn’t work from sketches. He creates the individual parts (stripped sheets and solid colors), then composes directly on the work table, then transfers to the kiln shelf.
But “seat of the pants” makes it sound haphazard. After 50 years of working glass, I wouldn’t consider his composing this way to be capricious.
-Lani
July 16th, 2007 at 9:55 pm
Excellent additonal coverage. It looks like a very significant piece. I hope to check out for real someday.
-dan
October 31st, 2007 at 9:26 pm
Hello!! So how is the “Wonder Silicone” . I hope it works fantastic. Look forward to seeing the wonderful piece in the real. I was lucky to see parts at the conference this summer. Les
October 31st, 2007 at 9:29 pm
Oh yes, in the “construction ” photo, am I seeing screws in the HD board that is forming the walls , so that no movement happens. Les
November 5th, 2007 at 10:51 pm
Hello again. Just wondering how the silicone is holding up!!! Les
February 25th, 2008 at 11:50 am
Hello!!! I come back to this great blog often to see Klaus and and friends and to also see if I have missed the answer to the glue situation to hang this wonderful work. Have you had good success with your choices . Or am I on the wrong blog section to here what you finally settle with, or do we have to be VERY patient and see the work for ourselves at the conference (which will be just as great) soooo hopefully I will see other comments beyond mine. Les