PAStA Fine Art Gallery has named Alison Schaeffler-Murphy as the March Featured Artist at the 214 Charlotte St. gallery. Schaeffler-Murphy’s “Aspire I – Guardians of Ethics” is a fused glass and mixed media assemblage series that seeks to animate the need for citizens to reflect on today’s consequential issues. Her fused dichroic glass guardian figures represent significant interpersonal principles as prompts for humankind.
An artist reception took place on First Friday Artwalk; Hendricks Duo provided live music. Schaeffler-Murphy’s featured work will be showcased in the front gallery for the entire month of March.
“Glass’s qualities serve as an emblematic representation of the complexities of our time,” Schaeffler-Murphy explained. “I am drawn to glass for its ability to reflect and refract, reveal and conceal, all while balancing fragility and strength. My interest in the esoterica has led me to incorporate symbols and quotes (within my work) that reflect societal perspectives across traditions.”
Schaeffler-Murphy’s background in glass began more than 20 years ago. She was a stained-glass window artist and later incorporated fused glass into her work. Principal among her glass creations is her fusion of dichroic glass in a signature line of wearable-art jewelry. Dichroic glass, originally made for the space industry, reflects the light of one color while simultaneously transmitting a spectrum of other hues. By using dichroic glass in her unique creations, Alison explored the dynamic relationship of light, color and perception.
More recently, she has integrated fused dichroic glass into mixed-media assemblage constructions. By blending these varied materials, she amplifies dichroic glass’s unique play of color and light while adding form, texture and new narratives.
Her first series, “Aspire I – Guardians of Ethics” arose out her renewed interest in philosophy. Her featured work at the PAStA Fine Art Gallery represents a merge of ethical ideas with her abstracted figurative pendants.
PAStA Fine Art Gallery is open seven days a week from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
