A vessel first appears within my imagination as one of many creative possibilities, like an artifact in a private museum crowded with unrealized objects. I consider this inner context to be the optimal viewing environment. So as the vessel evolves from idea to object through the glassblowing process, some inexplicable quality fades. I wanted to present my vessels in a format that would recreate the inner context and offer that imaginative experience to the audience.

The “still life” format, or the designed arrangement of objects, restores this inexplicable quality. It is an age-old artistic practice where arrangements of ordinary objects become powerfully symbolic. The format allows me to construct a small part of that inner context, a corner of my private museum. As a result, single vessels gain new significance when juxtaposed among other forms. They become the words and syntax of more meaningful visual statements.