Accent Art Glass Presents: About the Artist
James Nowak studied at the Pratt School of Fine Arts in Seattle and
later at the Pilchuck Glass School in Stanwood, Washington. This provided a
foundation for establishing his own studio. Isolated in the Southern Oregon coast
wilderness for over a decade, James developed his own unique style, heavily
influenced by the raw grandeur of the maritime Pacific Northwest. The current studio
location provides a grandeur of a different sort, the robust diversity and activity
of historic Pioneer Square in downtown Seattle. Here, in his home town, resides a
core of glass workers to rival any in the world. This proximity to the abundant
knowledge and skilled artisans provides the fuel necessary to propel his work to new
heights.James learned to blow glass using the team approach. Because of this he had the good fortune of working with several very talented Northwest artists like Dale Chihuly, Benjamin Moore, Richard Royal, Dante Marioni, William Morris, Karen Willenbrink, Stephan Dale Edwards, Joey Kirkpatric, Flora Moore and Mark Eckstrand. These individuals have greatly enriched his understanding of glass. One of the most influential to James, Dale Chihuly, provided him with the tremendous opportunity of working on one of his winter glass blowing teams held then at Pilchuck.
Glass unlike any other medium possesses the remarkable qualities of transparency and flexibility. This allows not only the formation of a full-bodied sculpture but also the ability to create depth within the walls of the glass vessel. My imagery is directed towards creating a sense of perspective. While hot, glass can be bent, twisted and folded into complex, convoluted capsules. These capsules are self-contained elements full of detail and animation. I then use these elements to build a baroque surface, alive with activity, complete with the illusion of foreground and distant background.
- James Nowak