Kinship in Collective & Collaborative Practices: Shifting Studio Glass Histories

GEEX Talks Q&A Podcast

How can nurturing kinship shift the present, history, and future of studio glass? Artists Cedric Mitchell and Corey Pemberton, representing the Better Together events series for Black and Brown makers, join in conversation with citizen artist vanessa german and discuss your questions.

"Not everybody is returning the circle. Not every glassblower you know — not every artist you know — is making the connection and gathering human beings into circle, into spiral, the way that you are. So how then do you recognize other circle keepers when you bring people together? Are you recognizing in young people the carrying capacity to restore the circle? And are you speaking that into them and saying, 'Hey, I see this in you'? And are you looking at what ingredients of love you're working with?"

Transcript available on the GEEX website.

Made possible by the Center for Craft. Thanks to Wet Dog Glass and Pittsburgh Glass Center for sponsoring this episode!

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This episode features:

• Corey Pemberton (@instantglassic): glassblower, painter, and artist-organizer. Visit Corey’s website.
• Cedric Mitchell (@cedricmitchelldesign): glassblower, designer, and artist-organizer. Visit Cedric’s website.
• vanessa german (@vanessalgerman): citizen artist. Check out her work via Kasmin Gallery.

Additional links:

• Better Together (@bettertogether_ctf): Learn more about Better Together.
• Crafting the Future (@crafting_the_future): Become a Futurist!

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• Support the GEEX Talks Q&A Podcast! https://geex.glass/support/donate/
• ... And subscribe to GEEX Talks! https://geex.glass/support/subscribe/
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Theme music by Poddington Bear. Additional music in this episode by Otis McDonald.

Edited and produced by Emily Leach and Ben Orozco.

geex.glass/

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Questions from the audience:

• INTRO: Can you talk about what kinship means to you and your practice? From GEEX Staff.
• ORGANIZATIONAL MODELS: Thinking about how structures can support and reinforce kinship: How do you develop equitable community spaces? What guidelines, tenets, or community agreements were used in the development of CTF (Crafting The Future) and Better Together? What were some agreements for the ArtHouse? Were there resources (info, frameworks, etc.) from other organizations you looked at during programmatic development, and could you expand on that process?
• LEARNING FROM THE MARGINS: How does this work integrate backward into education in glass as well? How do we reshape the educational environments where glass is learned?
• COMMUNITY: Art school can have a kind of dog-eat-dog, individual mentality. How can we invite a more collaborative, supportive, community environment in art education?
• DELINEATION: Do you see definitions between art, activism, and acts of wellness?
• LOVING INSTITUTIONS: What was one of your favorite moments from a residency program? A subscriber mentions: “The directive that art institutions should be centers of love and joy is very powerful - it is such a great thing to provide that moves away from logistics, meeting goals, and statistics for the staff.” Have you seen models in the world of foundations and funding that are supportive of quality of experience vs quantitative data?
• ALTERNATIVE SPACES: How do you seek support for openly engaging art outside of the institution that impacts neighbors and community members in the streets, sidewalks, and front porches, rather than the museum?
• CONVERSATION: Artmaking as a way to describe and treat mental health issues is commonly experienced, but maybe not expressed. How can we break down stigmas concerning mental health, and include a more open dialogue about mental health, trauma, and struggles in our work and communities?
• VISIBILITY: How has representation (or a lack thereof) affected your development as an artist?
• ADVICE: What do you wish you were told when becoming an artist?
• INFLUENCE: What is one of the most powerful moments in your life that shaped you into the artist you are today?
• SHIFTING STUDIO GLASS: What does Shifting Studio Glass Histories mean to you? What does it mean to recenter the history or future of glass, craft, and art? What would you like to focus on instead?
• WHY GLASS?: What about the material or process drew you towards working with or in this field?

Thanks to educators and learners from UW-Madison, Urban Glass, Ohio State University, and Hastings College for sharing questions!