Sublime Glass Sculptures by Rhoda Baer

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“With a career spanning decades creating award winning photographic images for corporate, advertising and health industry clients, my first venture in glass was quiet by accident,” explains American artist Rhoda Baer.

Ten years ago, Baer spent the day with her good friend’s 12-year old daughter. With about an hour left at the end of the day, they decided to take a walk through an artist colony and stumbled on a glass studio. “I wasn’t the least bit interested but Erin was, and in a clear voice said the wonderful words: ‘Lets take a class together.’ After one weekend glass fusing workshop, we were both hooked. I liked the way working with glass felt and in my mind I could easily see the possibilities. So we both dove in and in a matter of months I had turned my now obsolete darkroom into a glass cold working shop and installed a medium sized kin for fusing.”

Rhoda went on to arrange private, highly focused technical classes with a series of talented and generous glass artists, and Erin went on to high school after winning several awards for her glass work.

“In truth, I believe my glass and photography have a lot in common. I enjoy bouncing back and forth and combining the two. Both are highly influences by my modern minimalist perspective and rely heavily on my desire to create work that communicates,” explains Rhoda.

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Although her pieces have been exhibited nationally and internationally, and can be found in many private collections, it is the immense satisfaction she gets from working a full day in the studio that gets her up in the morning. “I still think it’s all magic.”

Finding inspiration in the Northern Lights phenomenon, Rhoda uses simple shapes and vibrant shifting tones to create sculptures that explore the interaction of light, movement, colour and form.

There is a certain mystery to these optical glass pieces. When you walk around them, the colours diffuse, reflect and combine to form new colours – or disappear entirely.

Baer’s laminated glass work will be featured in a beautiful table top art book entitled Glass Art, which is available here.

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