Michael Janis COLD+HOT 2010

Michael Janis

The Sun, 2009

Kiln-cast glass, glass powder, steel

19 x 37 x 2 in.

Michael Janis COLD+HOT 2010

MICHAEL JANIS is co-director of the Washington Glass School. An artist working with glass, his work is cerebral, well crafted and beautiful. Using glass as the foundation for his work, Janis sets out meticulous drawings incorporating Chicago landmark buildings and metaphysical ideas. The resulting milky white panels possess an uncommon visual appeal.

Janis' statement notes that he seeks interactive commentary using simple forms and intricate glass powder drawings to create unusual juxtapositions of imagery. His painstaking process of developing scenes (suspending them within layers of glass, employing elements of light, color, and sequence), are a gift of time and process that give rise to a contemplative aspect of his imagery. Working hard to create meaning out of his work, Janis favors dream-state surrealism that uses figures, text and common objects to hint at vague yet universal questions - artworks that suggest meanings while encouraging viewers to arrive at their personal conclusions.

Michael Janis' work is currently on exhibition at COLD+HOT 2010, and will be shown at the Fuller Craft Museum in 2011. He lives and works in Washington, DC.

COLD+HOT 2010

Opening Reception 1 July Exhibition through 28 August

MICAËLA GALLERY presents COLD+HOT 2010, an annual showcase of the work of selected national and international glass sculptors in a single exhibition. Featured artists are Peter Bremers, Kathleen Elliot, Michael Janis, Michelle Knox, Weston Lambert, Carol Lawton, Silvia Levenson, JP Long, Susan Longini, Thomas Scoon, Carmen Spera, and Kristiina Uslar, who collectively demonstrate the expansive versatility of glass as a sculpture medium in terms of material, color, and form, alongside the video work of Tim Tate and photography of Mark Leibowitz.

The exhibition title, "COLD+HOT 2010," derives from the distinct processes used by glass artists for millennia - sculpting its form, or cold-working it while cold (actually, at room temperature), very hard and brittle; and working hot glass, shaping it while molten, using blowing and/or kiln forming techniques at temperatures ranging from 1700 to over 3000 degrees.

Rich in visual vernacular, "COLD+HOT 2010" introduces the work of new artists to Micaëla Gallery, Kathleen Elliot, Michael Janis, Tim Tate, and Mark Leibowitz.

You are cordially invited to join us for a welcoming reception for the artists on Thursday, 1 July 2010, from 5 to 7.30 pm.

For inquiries or a preview of these works, please contact info@micaela.com.

A print exhibition catalog, PDF exhibition catalog, photographs and high resolution images are available upon request. To order print exhibition catalog, please contact the gallery at info@micaela.com

All images are courtesy of the artists and Micaëla Gallery, protected by all copyright/trademark laws everywhere. ©1997-2010 micaëla and micaëla gallery, its name, logo and all website content are copyright/trademarks of micaëla gallery llc.