“My work investigates how the materials and processes of art making engage the senses for the viewer.  The process, or craft, of glass making is my main focus of exploration.  Process, and an active departure from the ideology that surrounds the modern craft of glass making, play a large role in how I approach my work.  I view craft as a process of performance through which the outer appearance and innate presence of the object is dictated.  I record the process of glass making and integrate this documentation into the final work of art.  Documentation can occur as video footage, objects, castings and many other forms.  My current body of work is constructed around the idea that the world is in a constant state of flux, of both creation and destruction.  Though a brick, a person or a piece of art may appear permanent, by nature they are always changing, and always deteriorating. Within that degradation and imperfection I find a sense of pleasure and an interest in incidental creation whether it be scars on the body, or cracks on the sidewalk. These signs suggest the infinite and unstoppable passage of time and its ability to transform.

“My efforts begin with uninhibited experimentation as I explore different and unconventional ways of making glass.  During these experimentations I am focused on the performance as a large part the final product. I eventually hone in and refine the aspects of the piece that are most interesting and telling.  Through these experimentations I strive to contradict assumptions about how glass functions in art. Much of my work includes traditional and untraditional processes, and the final product is a combination of both the documentation of the performance of making, and well as the objects that are produced.

“The performance of craft and the performance of nature are constantly violating the structures man has set into place.  Manmade structures are continually eroding, cracking, shattering, crumbling.  I try to replicate and record these occurrences that transpire both from humans and nature as a basis for my art.  I hope to enhance the viewer’s perception toward a greater sensitivity when engaging the world.  Through that sensitivity I hope to enable others to see the power and beauty in imperfection around them.”

http://kimharty.com/