UrbanSparkle 2021
November 12th – January 14th, 2022Exhibitions
Opening reception November 17th from 6-8 PM.
UrbanSparkle is UrbanGlass' annual exhibition of artists exploring the material of glass as adornment in tandem with New York City Jewelry Week. In the spirit of the holidays, works selected for this exhibition embody the transcendent quality of glass to glimmer, gleam and sparkle. Against the backdrop of a seasonal shift to the cold dark days of winter, this exhibition features objects of ornamentation and light that only a material as spellbinding as glass can create.
This year's UrbanSparkle exhibition brings together five artists, from around the country and the world, working in vastly different ways while expanding on the perception of what glass jewelry can be. From the illustrative detail of Israeli artist Nirit Dekel’s necklaces to the borosilicate statements of Argentinian artist Luz Arias, to the carved creations of West Coast-based Alex Stanyon, the range of aesthetic is sure to wow visitors of UrbanGlass. Also featured this year are *brand new* collections by Philadelphia artist Wes Valdez of BlobBlob Studios and our very own Brooklyn-based Ope Omojola, the powerhouse behind Octave Jewelry. The experimentation and exploration in the use of glass, combined with the NYCJW audience hungry to see something different and inspired, brings you a breadth of work stretching coasts and spanning oceans.
About the Artists:
Luz Arias is a Buenos Aires–based jeweler who studied architecture and fine arts before encountering the practice of lost-wax casting. She subsequently trained as a goldsmith and took courses in stone setting and the making of platinum chains by hand. She has studied with established jewelers worldwide and has worked in a variety of materials, including wood with Japanese lacquer. At present, Luz works in glass.
Nirit Dekel's wearable art jewelry shows creative thinking as well as correspondence with a long respected tradition in glass. She explores a wide array of colors, textures and forms which grant her creations with beautiful movement and life. Dekel has presented her works in prestigious events and venues such as: SOFA, Bijoux, LOOT, Art Palm Beach, Israeli Glass Biennale, Jewelry Biennale and more. Her work is included in many private contemporary jewelry collections in the USA, Europe and Israel.
Ope Omojola is the face, hands, and heart behind Octave Jewelry. Ope's multidisciplinary practice inspires her jewelry which is all about worlds colliding: the organic beauty and rich colors of glass meeting the clean geometry of metal. Her work is meant to be worn in motion, bringing a pop of bold, bright color to each day.
Alex Stanyon began working with hot glass in 1996 at Punahou School in Honolulu, Hawaii. Since then, she has studied a variety of ways to work with glass in the hot shop and cold shop through classes at Pilchuck Glass School and other education centers. By exploring engraving techniques, she furthered her interest in working with the shape and texture of glass in its cold, solid state. Alex starts with solid blocks of glass that are shaped using a time and equipment intensive process similar to stone carving. Alex lives near Seattle, Washington and works out of a studio space in her home.
Wes Valdez lives and works near Philadelphia, PA as an artist and educator with his wonderful partner and two adorable canines, Eos and Clem. His work involves a lighthearted approach of investigation of form through playful experimentation. By intuitively collaging materials and processes, he highlights impulse, desire, and beauty. Using color, optics, light, and texture, he creates enticing visually satisfying sculptural forms.
