Visions of our Galaxy: Josh Simpson

June 4 to September 3, 2006

Keith and Winifred Shantz Gallery

french version

Visions of our Galaxy:

Josh Simpson Exhibits at the Canadian Clay & Glass Gallery

WATERLOO REGION, ON, March 9, 2006: Visions of Our Galaxy, an exhibit by Josh Simpson, will open at the Canadian Clay & Glass Gallery in the Donald & Pamela Bierstock Gallery on Sunday, June 4 from 2:00-5:00pm, with an artist’s talk at 1:00pm. Simpson’s work in glass - platters, vessels and sculptures - are exhibited and collected internationally for their extraordinary, complex beauty. He creates landscapes of the seas, the skies and the heavens that are intricate, mesmerizing and technically unparalleled.

Simpson’s work has been exhibited in many international venues, including the Kennedy Space Centre (Cape Canaveral), Museum of Science & Industry (Florida), Fundacio Centro Nacional del Vidro (Spain), New York Hall of Science (NY), Museu Vidro Marinha Grande (Portugal), Karanisu Gallery (Tokyo), and the Corning Museum of Glass. His work can be found in prestigious collections in museums and galleries worldwide.

Josh Simpson first developed the idea of creating glass planets when he discovered marbles outside the door to his studio in the Berkshire Mountains of western Massachusetts. They had obviously been there for a long time, and had piqued the interest of many children over the years.

Simpson’s “planets” are individual worlds of wonder that remain alive in one’s imagination - much like glass in its hot molten state, when it moves and responds to exterior forces, seeming to possess a life of its own. Each planet appears to be rife with deep oceans, vast mountains and lush valleys – and, quite possibly, intelligent life. It is impossible to pass by one of Simpson’s planets, wherever they may be found - in a museum, an Egyptian desert or a mountaintop – without close inspection. Each miniature world stimulates the imagination, awakens the intellect and is a unique work of art glass.

As well as the exhibit, the CCGG will be a participant in Simpson’s international Infinity Project, which began in 1976, as Simpson was contemplating the longevity of glass. He began to hide planets near his home and later he took planets with him whenever he traveled. After acquiring his pilot’s license, Simpson was able to drop planets from a small airplane window in very remote locations. Since the year 2000, over 1,600 participants have hidden planets in locations around the world as part of the Infinity Project. Some were intended to be discovered quickly, while others will remain hidden for centuries, in locales from Antarctica to the North Pole. Another planet has ridden on the space shuttle with Simpson’s wife, who is an astronaut.

Simpson will leave a planet in Waterloo when he returns to Massachusetts after the opening weekend of Visions of our Galaxy.

For further information contact Virginia Eichhorn, Curator, virginia@canadianclayandglass.ca or 519-746-1882, #230 or Kate Holt, Marketing Manager, kate@canadianclayandglass.ca or 519-746-1882, #234. Canadian Clay & Glass Gallery, 25 Caroline Street North, Waterloo, ON, CANADA N2L 2Y5. Hours: Tues.-Sat. 10am-5pm, Sundays 1-5pm. Website: www.canadianclayandglass.ca.

Josh Simpson and crew making a vase

Megaplanet- glass 18.5" dia.

Inhabited Vase - glass

Portal - glass, tektite