“I have gotten so many compliments on these pieces - mostly from people who aren’t familiar with Linda MacNeil’s work and are not collectors of contemporary glass - they just know good design and fine craftsmanship” — Suzanne Perrault
In 2021, Linda introduced the idea of creating an annual offering of a singlular piece from her private collection of her work. Every year the offer will be announced in late January and released on her birthday, April 14. This year, the 2021 inaugural offering, Neck Collar No. 46 from 2018 went to Suzanne Perrault of Rago Arts and Auction Center
Read MoreLinda creates each and every form - from the collar or the links to the distinctive jewels themselves. Some of the processes she uses are evident in her award winning Primavera necklace…. casting with rubber molds for both the gold links and the setting for the diamond detail as well as for creating the glass jewels.
Read MoreMost recently, I have been gravitating towards reds and oranges. Also, my choice of 24k gold plating on the metal is making a rich color contrast with the glass. Pantone's orange ochre is one of the colors of Spring/Summer fashion in 2021. I particularly liked its appearance in the Valentino Spring/Summer Couture show in Rome…
Read MoreI work on several pieces simultaneously. Each at different stages in development. I am currently working on a Neck Collar with a glass collar. This is a new direction this series has taken recently and there are up to about seven people involved in the processes needed to make one of these pieces.
Read MoreQ: What types of glass do you use the most?
MACNEIL: PLATE GLASS. Plate glass is the type of medium I use the most because as an artist I like to be in control of both form and color and because the forms I make are precise. I use both vintage and contemporary plate glass. Today’s industrial plate glass has great clarity and comes in reliable measurements and vintage plate glass comes in different thicknesses and in unusual, opaque colors, both are great for use in my designs. I use them in combination with each other as well as independently.
Read MoreQ: Where does glass get its color from and why is red glass more expensive than any other color?
MACNEIL: It’s perhaps not very well known that colored glass is achieved by using oxidized metals to create the color within the glass. Historically many different elements were experimented with, but over time only the ones created with metals maintained their color intensity in all situations including direct sunlight. A prime example where the capacity to hold color is critical are the stained glass windows in churches, mosques, synagogues and cathedrals. They were positioned to get the most light possible throughout the day and the richness of the color was vital to their aesthetic.
Read MoreMary Van Cline is a Seattle-based artist working in glass and mixed media. She has received much attention for her sculpture that combines hot and cold glass processes, cast glass elements, photo-sensitized glass, and her haunting and enigmatic photographs. Van Cline’s most recent project, which began in 2017, is an ongoing series of nearly life-size portrait photographs that she calls the Documenta Project. The Documenta Project is meant to capture, preserve, and make visible the personalities – including artists, collectors, curators, critics, suppliers, and gallerists – who have created an international and close-knit community around the practice, teaching, marketing, and collecting of contemporary studio glass. The Documenta portraits, captured on black and white film using a Hasselblad camera and a large-format digital Phase One camera from Denmark, are true collaborations between Van Cline and her subjects, who she almost always knows well. A project that Van Cline hopes to continue into the next decade, her photographs are notable for their honesty, humor, and grace. For more information, https://urbanglass.org/glass/the-documenta-project.
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