ARTIST

Since 1975 Victor Chiarizia has explored many facets of glassmaking, including blown, flameworked, cast, etched and sandblasted. Today, Chiarizia's sculptural works express his thoughts about life, growth and renewal in art glass comprised of two distinctive techniques - hot glass and flameworked glass with vitreous fired-on enamels. Profound images from Chiarizia's Italian-American background coupled with a boundless imagination give an earthy yet surreal style to much of his sculptural work.

Victor Chiarizia's glass is well-known for its technical innovations, organic forms and spirited colorations. His most acclaimed work includes The Botanicals, a series of sculptures with flameworked glass which is treated with multiple applications of enamels to give luster and luminosity to the vines, blossoms, fruit, human hands, and other elements that cling to amorphous hot glass vessels.

Chiarizia also creates limited-edition vessels and sculptures which demonstrate an exceptional use of Incalmo, a 500 year-old Venetian technique that requires the artist to create cup - shape vessels which are then connected to one another on the blow pipe. Incalmo and reverse incalmo are complex and physically demanding processes for even the most experienced glassblowers. Chiarizia uses this unusual technique to produce large vertical and diagonal bands of color within a vessel. In addition, he has also earned acclaim for the Volcanic Series of glass sculptures with sand-carved and etched surfaces to reveal deeply organic textures and colorations upon a Pate de Verre base.

Chiarizia has adapted the reverse incalmo technique to create vertical and diagonal bands of color in much of his work.  His innovative use of a traditional processes results in designs that are quite unique.  With the addition of vibrant colors, the artist creates a body of work with strong visual impact.

The Botanical series represents a culmination of a quarter century of Victor Chiarizia's glass blowing experience. These sculptures are created using lampworking and blown glass techniques. The intricate details of the sculptures are lampworked and then hand painted with enamels which are fired onto the glass; the vessels from which they emerge are blown.

The Volcanic Series represents Chiarizia's artistic interpretation of geological phenomena that might evolve from volcanic activity. The sculptures, which resemble solidified lava and obsidian funnels, are the artist's manifestation of the idea that beauty can emerge from conflagration, a large and destructive fire.