01 Aug Illuminations: Ones to Watch

Fused-glass artist April Surgent emerged on the art scene only a few years ago but already her work is wait-listed. Before she creates one of her cameo engraved panels it’s marked sold. Surgent’s work caught the collective eye of art connoisseurs by carving through layers of fused warm glass, conjuring through the paradox of historical significance to unfolding innovation. Textured insculptured drawings embedded into layers of glass portray her interior sense of place using exterior cityscapes. At first glance it is difficult to believe her often multi-paned pieces are not actual photographs. People, like shadows, meld into the scraped and cut finish. Surgent’s ministration to nuance and detail simply astound with images culled from memories of places both at home and abroad. Her multi-paned pieces span the range of stark gripping ruins to an almost intimate peek through private windows and beyond.

Surgent’s work has appeared at COLLECT 2007 and will be there again in 2008. This international art fair, organized by the British Crafts Council, is a showcase for contemporary objets d’art. A selection of prestigious applied and decorative art galleries from around the globe exhibit museum-quality works in London’s Victoria and Albert Museum. Surgent has also shown at the Sculptural Objects Functional Art (SOFA) show in Chicago. And she is currently finishing up a major commission for the Hotel Murano in Tacoma, Washington, a hotel famous for showcasing glass art the world over. Surgent is also present in four selected collections in Australia.