Wanganui Glass Students Scoop Awards

Tuesday, 20 October 2009

The fourth annual RE:FRACTION Outdoor Glass Sculpture exhibition opened at the Sculpture Park at Waitakaruru Arboretum in the Waikato on Saturday evening. The exhibition runs through to the 18th November.

The exhibition includes sculptures by more than 30 artists from around New Zealand including those created by senior students at the Wanganui Glass School.
 

The Swarbrick Dixon Glass Awards were judged this year by Karl Chitham.

The Swarbrick Dixon 2009 award winner for Excellence in Glass Sculpture was Hamish Webster for his series ‘Mesozoic’. Chitham commented, “The winning work may be a surprise to many who come and view this display. This work captivated me from the moment I glimpsed it through the foliage. It was engaging from the outset – combining a subtle playfulness with a diminutive confidence. It utilized the respected traditions of glass blowing in a way that was both familiar yet all together other-worldly. The work itself appear to seamlessly blend into its natural environment while simultaneously holding onto the qualities which make glass such an alluring medium both for the maker and the viewer. This piece was most definitely a statement in contradictions.”
  

The Swarbrick Dixon 2009 Student award for Excellence in Glass Sculpture was awarded to George Agius for her ‘Kai-wiana’ of which the judge said “…A number of works caught my attention and clearly demonstrated a sophisticated understanding of the medium while exploring a whimsical side that is sometimes only possible with the freedom allowed during study.”

 

Both award winners hail from the the Wanganui Glass School, a tertiary training facility specialising in Glass Art, Glass Design and Production.

 

More about Wanganui Glass School

The Glass School was established in 1989 by the Wanganui Community Regional Polytechnic and was subsequently owned and managed by UCOL. In late 2007 UCOL and the Wanganui District Council (WDC) entered into a partnership agreement to secure the future of the school and to facilitate the continued delivery of the glass programmes.

In mid 2008, the WDC established a Private Training Establishment (PTE) called the Wanganui Educational Institute which now manages the operational activities of the Glass School facility.
 

At the School students receive fully integrated training and education in glass. This is provided by the nationally unique Diploma in Glass Design and Production, a three year full-time Level 6 programme, and the Glass Major and glass electives within the full-time four year Level 7, Bachelor of Fine Arts degree.
 

Both of these programmes are delivered by the Universal College of Learning (UCOL) in partnership with the Wanganui Glass School.