It's been a while since I've actually sat down to write in the blog. I just haven't been motivated to crow. The Wired Designs girls (Cathy, Francesca, Rene, Heidy, Nicole, Judy, and Stacey) have all chastised me about being too shy-humble-quiet about recent events. They've encouraged, pushed, and admonished me for staying silent.
The truth is that while I'm extremely proud of all that we have accomplished, I'm still sensitive to the arrows that get hurled by the haters. Someone very wise (one of the WD girls) said to me yesterday,
"You cannot find your happiness while trying to please others!" So from today forward I'm going to work on exercising the "find my happiness" muscle!
So...here's the update:
- Wired Designs Studios is doing great things! After a solid 10 years in business we are still going strong! At a time when other studios are closing their doors, we continue to fill classes and bring in the best international talent to the area. I'm proud that we have such a strong line up for 2013: Gil Reynolds, Michael Dupille, Paula Radke, Roger Thomas, Richard LaLonde, Thomas Mann, and Richard Salley! What a talented group of folks! Our in house classes are booming too! The Weaving, Sewing, Quilting Class was a great success. Here's a sample ...
- OMG ALERT! Those black lines you see are NOT stringer! They are actual stitches! We drilled every hole and sewed the darn thing together. The images are screen printed. Each student drilled 125 holes in their piece, and printed an image into their glass. This was my demo piece. I love the climber! It's such a good metaphor for my journey. I encourage any artist who is trying to find their voice to really think about their life and find the images that define their issues, struggles and successes. When you have some of those images, incorporate them into your work. The work will have have so much more meaning for you and it will resonate with others as well.
- KilnFrog.com, my other adventure, is booming! Stacey and I have worked hard to make this successful and it has paid off. This year we've shipped kilns to Canada, Mexico, the US Virgin Islands, Australia, France, and other parts of the globe. We can truly say we have gone international. Stacey handles all of the logistics, and I take my hat off to her, because all that international shipping stuff is tedious and difficult. She handles it like it was nothing!! TY SHC!
- PRINTMAKING... I could not love it more! Printing on glass, paper, metals...I'm ready. Here's a few pieces that I whipped up on the fly. Thanks to my buddy Lisa Meyer who is motivating me to do more! We have art play dates that make me more creative. I'd love to do that at the studio with some of my students. Anyone up for that? If you are, email me and we'll put something together. Here's some eye candy for that...
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| This is an 8" x 8" glass high fire with a screen printed image. |
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This is a 9" x 12" Monotype on Paper, Gelatin Print with Gauche
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- Personally.... Things are good! I'm a very lucky girl. I've had a few recent health issues that have taken their toll on me, but they are minor in the big scheme of things. My 9th grade wonderkid is tearing things up in a great way. I'm officially declaring 14 years old as the best age ever! He's the perfect mix of funny, introspective, outwardly aware, compassionate, and goofy! He's doing great in school and girls are just too annoying to him to pay any attention to. YES! I'm coming up on my 20th anniversary to the most understanding man in the universe. He sure does put up with a lot of crap. I'm very lucky to have his support! He has become the champion welder, and is almost finished building my jewelry press. I have to say, I'm pretty impressed with what he's come up with. I'll have to beg my friend Sherry Fotopoulus to teach me what to do with the thing. He got the idea to build it from his friend John Meyer, who is building one for Lisa. So the two of those guys are having fun at the scrap yard, home depot, harbor freight, northern tool, and other guy sites. School starts on Jan 16th, so back to the grind. By the end of the Summer, I'll have 24 of my 36 credits completed! It's actually going by pretty quickly. Those of you who think you can't do this....You can, you just have to try. See picture with climber above......
- FINALLY... the thing to crow about......
Press release
For additional information, contact
Gail Stouffer
Phone: (210) 495-4495
E-mail: wireddesigns@sbcglobal.net
Website: www.wireddesignsstudio.com
Work by San Antonio Artist Selected for
New York Gallery Show
SAN ANTONIO, Texas — Cora Rosevear, Associate Curator at the Museum of Modern Art, has
selected a piece by San Antonio artist, educator and studio-owner Gail Stouffer to be included in an
upcoming New York gallery show sponsored by the National Women's Caucus for Art (WCA). Ms.
Stouffer is one of only 25 artists from around the world selected to show their work as part of this
juried exhibition; an additional 118 artists will have their work included in the show catalogue. The
WCA's mission is to create community through art, education, and social activism, and utilizes art as
the universal language to engage artists, NGOS, and civil society on a broad range of issues such as
gender equity and environmental sustainability. The show, "Bound," explores the way boundaries
define and shape identities, relationships, ideas and politics.
Ms. Stouffer's piece, "Rules for Girls," is a 9" x 13" mixed media monoprint. "In much of my work, I
explore the issues of human identity, with a special focus on women's issues," she explains. "I am
especially intrigued by the conflict between our public or social role and our private or internal
identity." Ms. Stouffer frequently explores these themes out of context, by coupling them with
vintage icons or whimsical, vibrant images intended to engage the viewer before encouraging further
examination to reveal each piece's true meaning.
Ms. Stouffer is co-owner of Wired Designs Studios in San Antonio, which offers a wide variety of
workshops in kiln-formed glass, metalworking, and design, and hosts well-known national instructors throughout the year. Her work has been featured in numerous exhibitions and is installed in public
spaces and private collections throughout Texas. She is an adjunct faculty member at The Southwest
School of Art in San Antonio, and a visiting instructor at The Houston Center for Contemporary Craft
and Glasscraft Expo. Ms. Stouffer is currently completing her Master's Degree in Art Education at
Texas Tech University's School of Art.
"Bound" will run from January 30 through February 23, 2013, at the Phoenix Gallery, 210 Eleventh
Avenue, Suite 902, New York, New York 10001.
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Mixed Media Mono Print, Photo Emulsion Technique with Watercolor
9" x 13" on Paper |
including mosaics, blown, beads, stained and fused.
including mosaics, blown, beads, stained and fused.
