OPENING: New twists on the goblet form at Espace Verre in Montreal

Jeff Ferrier and Christina Mayr, Quand les choses ne sont pas ce qu’elles sont (Photo: Espace VERRE)

“Goblets Galore,” an exhibition of glassware that expands the possibilities of the classic drinking vessel, opened last week at Montreal’s Espace VERRE gallery. The exhibition features the work of thirteen artists, each of whom offers a unique twist on the classic form of the drinking glass. The exhibition finds a middle ground between technique and concept, which is rare. Many art students create drinking goblets as a way to perfect their technique, but the practice required to perfect the demanding form and the endless repetition have been the bane of many a glass art professor trying to get students to think strategically about making sculptural objects. The Goblets Galore exhibition (“Coupes à gogo” in French) explores the aesthetic potential of this often-overlooked form, elevating an everyday, functional object to an artistic entity in its own right.

“The ‘Goblets Galore’ show is a fun and dynamic concept,” artist Cédric Ginart told The Hot Sheet in an email exchange. “Each artist had to explore the goblet in its sculptural manner instead of the traditional functional way. Some of us did a survey around the dysfunction and others looked at it in a colorful and fun approach.”

Ginard, who co-teaches a flameworking class and other courses at Espace VERRE and who serves as a scientific glassblower at the University of Montreal, added that he found inspiration in the process of stripping the traditional drinking glass of its functional nature. “For me, the idea of pushing the boundaries of dysfunction was very seductive,” he said. “In my work, it’s a concept that I use a lot, but this time, the scale as well as the movement and the dynamic was push[ed] a little more.”

"De fleurs et d'herbes" (Photo courtesy: Hadasha Hétu)

Artist Hadashah Hétu adhered more closely to the classic goblet form with her piece De fleurs et d’herbes. “I like my goblets to remind us of tradition in glass and glass history,” Hétu said in an email, “while by taking a closer look, the viewer/ visitor may observe the ‘unusual’ presence of text or images inside the ancient-looking object.” At first glance, her piece “De fleurs et d’herbes” assumes the familiar form of a functional drinking vessel; however, a closer look at the bowl reveals an intricate net-like reticello pattern and a delicate line of bluish-green cased text. For this piece, Hétu drew inspiration from a goblet featured in a fifteenth-century illustration of Tristan and Isolde.

Husband-and-wife team Vincent Chagnon and Anne Donzé collaborated on two new works for the show, as part of their series, Duel de coup(l)es—-a play on words in French between “cup” and “couple.” Their pieces, such as “Connexion” and “C’est assez” (translation: ‘That’s enough’) comment on the complex communication issues that often arise in relationships.

Vincent Chagnon and Anne Donzé, Connexion (detail) (Photo: Mathieu Donzé)

Other artists featured in the exhibition include Clément Bergeron, Nadine Busque, Sébastien Duchange, David Goranitis, Guillaume Martin, Mélanie Pageau, and Jean-Simon Trottier. Also featured are Christine Mayr and Jeff Ferrier, the founders of the Three Crow Glass studio in Quebec City.

Goblets Galore will be on display until May 4, 2012. Admission is free and the gallery is open Monday-Friday, 9 pm to 5 pm, as well as the last Sunday of every month from noon to 5 pm.

—Lindsay Lowe