I am a Northwest glass artist in Washington and have studied glass fusing,
lampworking, and kiln casting in the Seattle area. Fused glass is my
second career, following years of work in the sciences.
I am largely
self-taught, but founded Bridger Glass Studio in 2005 for my glass art.
My husband Michael Toelle is collaborator for the artwork that includes
forged/welded/finished steel. All of our art is unique, one of a kind,
and original. I have exhibited at galleries in multiple states as well as
at major juried arts fairs in the Northwest since 2005.
Glass is a three dimensional fluid with a beautiful capacity for representing flow, or contrasts in opacity, translucence, sheen or iridescence. Many of my pieces reflect minimal designs that contrast texture or translucence. Abstract asymmetry is a theme throughout much of my work. In Window in Black, e.g., an asymmetric translucent window is tightly fused to surrounding contrasting opaque glass. In my bowls-on-steel, although my main focus is the glass art, I have designed three-footed angular steel bases and rounded six footed bases, and I often use the translucence of the glass to engage with the steel as a part of the artwork. (See: Sample Pieces and Custom Glass)
My interest in glass for depicting movement and flow dates back to my early Cascade series which gave depth to multidirectional flows using layers of translucent glass. My boulder flow series subsequently abstracts tumbling rocks and boulders. (See: Sample Pieces)
My most recent Landscapes and Polar Ice series build on that and depict
more realistic rivers of ice, grassy hillsides of melting snow, and polar
ocean waters. This work is entirely original. These are steel or wood
framed wall-mounted glass sculptures. The polar ice series builds up
layers of glass to emulate 3D deep ocean waters, unmelted subsurface ice
and ocean swells. (See: Wall Sculpture)
Glass itself is fluid and is a
beautiful medium to use to portray ocean waters! This effort was
originally inspired by my daughter Kate O'Donnell's media work for the San
Francisco Exploratorium Ice Stories that included collaboration with
scientists studying the arctic and Antarctic.
(See
http://icestories.exploratorium.edu/)
My methods can be used to create either mounted wall art or two-sided free standing
architectural sculptures.
Much of my work involves precise hand-cutting, grinding and detailing.
The glass is food-safe, even though the pieces are designed and intended for display.