JEFF ZIMMERMAN – PUSHING BOUNDARIES OF A FRAGILE MEDIUM
New works by iconic glass artist Jeff Zimmerman are pushing the boundaries of a fragile, challenging and fascinating medium. The artist’s expansive career spans over two decades and ranges from intricate unique works to large scale custom commissions. As one of the leading international glass artists, Zimmerman has been a pioneer in presenting the possibilities and extraordinary aesthetic qualities of the material through his innovative and technical approaches to creating one of a kind designs.
Zimmerman’s latest designs build upon his versatile body of work and push the concepts and shapes he has been developing for years to an elevated level. At his recent show at R & Company in New York he re-imagined and transformed the gallery into a mesmerizing environment full of unique glass works.
This immersive installation introduced an entirely new series of functional pieces that vary in technique, texture, color, scale, and form. His oevre covers customizable illuminated sculptures, wall pieces, glass vessels and crystal sconces along with abstract photographs made in collaboration with Doug Piburn documenting exquisite details of Zimmerman’s glass designs.
Zimmerman’s practice is fundamentally influenced by the process of glass creation and he is instrumental in pushing the medium forward by blurring the boundaries between art, design and craft. Working by hand in his studio, Zimmerman has mastered the skill of glassblowing and is continually reinventing this ancient technique with experimental processes and innovative approaches.
He is able to both manipulate the material and allow for accidents to naturally occur from the medium itself. For the exhibition, Zimmerman marries diverse approaches to this craft to create unexpected works that are simultaneously biomorphic and geometrical.
With his latest expansive body of work, Zimmerman continues to draw inspiration from nature and furthers his research and investigation of the natural world. Also influenced by astronomy and metaphysics, he closely studies the galaxy, milky way, big bang, and cosmos to discover new abstract forms and concepts.
His exploration into materials, patterns and natural structures directly parallels the bold and seductive forms that he is able to conceive. Zimmerman’s passion in conjunction to his fluid approach to glassblowing has resulted in a collection of seductive and timeless designs.
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