1. Cliff Bohm – Rustic Chef’s Knife

2014
Steel, ebony, stainless steel
13.5 ” x 2.5″ x .625″
Opening Bid: $140

Cliff Bohm finds beauty in juxtaposition of polished steal next to the rough “unspoiled” textures generated by the forging process. He strives to create well crafted objects with the appealing design that possess a timeless  quality.

2. Nick DiPhillipo – Conclave

2004

Bronze

12″ x 12″ x 9″

Opening Bid: $380

Nick DiPhillipo is the Foundry department head at The Crucible as well as Casting Director at Artworks Foundry in Berkeley. After first being introduced to metal casting at Paolo Soleri’s Wind Chime Foundry in Arcosanti, Arizona, he has spent the last 35 years casting objects of his own design including vessels, lamps, and bells.

3. Randy Strong – Red & Black Ribbon Sculpture

2013

Hot sculpted glass

25″ x 5.5″ x 4″

Opening Bid: $475

Randy Strong is one of a handful of the early pioneering American Glass Artists. Winner of the juried 2005 and 2008 Niche award for blown glass. Randy Strong produces innovative designs in glass that continually influence the ever changing and growing community of studio glass artists.

4. Daniel Stauber – Two Sides of Mind #4

2014

Glass, steel

26.5″ x 17.5″ x 7.75″

Opening Bid: $600

Daniel Stauber studied and now teaches glass at The Crucible.  His work strives to both attract and repel, to reflect the polarities of life, and attempts to combine opposition to create emotionally stirring work. Daniel draws inspiration from the unconscious, and views art as the most sincere human endeavor.

5. Christian Schiess – Prosthetic Repairs to an Injured Environment #CII

2005
Machined metal, plexiglass, paint, podocarpus wood elements, stainless steel hardware, fluorescent light with remote control
39″ x 12″ x 12″
Opening Bid: $900

Christian Schiess is a San Francisco Bay area artist originally from New Mexico. His education spans several disciplines and institutions that include a B.A. from Univ. of New Mexico-Albuquerque, in Anthropology; a B.F.A. in Visual Arts from the Univ. of San Francisco, and an M.F.A. in Sculpture from Mills College. Additionally, he completed a Fulbright Fellowship at the Royal College of Art in London. His awards include a grant from the Pollock- Krasner Foundation, an NEA/AFI Grant, three NEA/Western States Regional Media Arts Fellowships, several artist-in-residencies including the Exploratorium, and the Bristol Exploratory, England. His work has been exhibited both nationally and internationally and currently he is on the faculty and Dept. Head of the Neon and Light Art Departments at The Crucible.

www.christianschiess.com

6. Gregg Hessel – Copper Candlesticks (Original Collection)

2015

Copper

Varied; 5″– 21″ tall

Opening Bid: $875

Gregg Hessel was raised by an artist and a crafts historian and is self taught in metal. Hessel studios is a small California studio employing skilled craftsmen to create highly refined, museum quality copper candlesticks and candle holders. Each candleholder is carefully forged by hand using high-heat torches and different hammers to achieve the desired shape and texture. Many studio tools and techniques have been developed by Hessel who is inspired by traditional metalworking methods as well as the desire to invent new techniques.

7. Rob Nehring – Diva

2015
Steel
7′ x 3′
Opening Bid: $1,600

With a BFA in Inter-arts that included theatre, dance and sculpture, Rob Nehring is the Sole Proprietor of Rusty Noodle Studios. Driven by the definition of sculpture as “something you back into when looking at a painting,” he tries to engage his audience with humor found in the personality of ordinary objects. An accomplished artist, Rob’s sculptures are in galleries and part of private collections throughout the US. The characters featured in Rusty Noodle Studios are created overall from 99% recycled materials. Through found scrap materials, Rob lets the materials dictate what they will become.

8. Alex Smith – Pavo

2008

Cast iron

17″ x 14″ x 9.5″

Opening Bid: $1,750

Alex attended the University of California Santa Cruz where he earned his BA in Sculpture in 2000. It was here with the challenges of academia he began to formalize his skills in metal casting and fabrication processes to demonstrate his ability in expression and form. He is apprentice and project manager for sculptor Fletcher Benton, where he enlarges Mr. Benton’s designs to monumental size, supervises building and installation of these works. Alex’s castings, paintings and fabricated works inspired by his travels, love of form, nature and technology has been featured at the Sculpturesite Gallery San Francisco, in public projects in Tucson, AZ and Orinda, CA and is currently featured at the Shidoni Gallery in New Mexico. alexanderthesmith.com

9. Susannah Israel – Rabbit Suit

2010

Terracotta clay

36″ x 16″  x 18″

Opening Bid: $2,000

Susannah Israel’s work is widely shown and appears in private and public collections around the world, such as the American Ceramics Collection, Mint Museum, the Archie Bray Foundation, Mission Clay, and the Toki collection. Israel has received a Virginia A. Groot Foundation grant, an NCECA Resident Scholarship to Archie Bray, and a Distinguished Faculty Service Award for curriculum, among many honors. Recent work with colorful theatrical costumes can be seen in the Yinge Ceramics Museum in Taiwan. She is the only artist from the USA ever to win the Fletcher Challenge Premier Award for her dynamic piece, Lobo California, now in the permanent collection in New Zealand.

Israel holds an MFA in Ceramics from San Francisco State University and currently teaches for Peralta Colleges in Oakland.

10. Bruce Beasley – Offspring III

2009

Cast bronze

8.5″ x 3″

Opening Bid: $1,750

Bruce Beasley is one of the most prominent sculptors in the US. In 1962 The New York MOMA acquired one of Beasley’s sculptures making him the youngest artist ever to be included in their permanent collection. In 1963, Beasley won the purchase prize in the Paris Biennale, the world’s most prestigious international exhibition. His work is included in the permanent collection of 32 art museums around the world. He has had 55 solo exhibitions in museums and galleries in the US and abroad and has been included in hundreds of important group exhibitions. He has represented the US. in numerous international Biennale exhibitions and world fairs. Beasley has done 37 monumental sculpture commissions in the US and abroad.

11. John Lewis – Blue Frit Bowl

2003

Black spun cast glass with colored frit

22″ x 8″

Opening Bid: $1,750

As a graduate in architecture at University of California Berkeley, John Lewis was introduced to blown glass by professor Marvin Lipofsky. Lewis founded the first private hot glass studio in California and received his MA in design in 1970. His early work in blown glass led to an interest in glass casting. With the help of an NEA grant, he built an experimental facility to explore the possibilities of cast glass. At his state-of-the-art casting studio in Oakland, CA, Lewis designs and produces cast glass sculpture, tables, vessels, and site specific architectural projects. He has completed numerous commissions for private and corporate clients and is represented internationally by galleries.

www.johnlewisglass.com

12. William Rose – Acroterion

2015
Orange alabaster, steel
18″ x 13″ x 5″
Opening Bid: $1,200

William began creating art more than 35 years ago designing and building custom homes, all the while traveling to many locations throughout the United States creating Sand Sculptures. In searching for a more permanent medium, William joined The Crucible 7 years ago and started stone carving under the guidance of then instructor/master sculptor, Barry Baldwin. William continued studying stone carving in Italy and is now the stone carving instructor at The Crucible. William’s art works have expanded to include metal sculpture.

13. Michael Sturtz – Falling Water

2012

Fabricated steel, glass, light

20.5″ x 20.5″ x 8.5″

Opening Bid: $900

Michael Sturtz has been an innovative sculptor, teacher, designer, builder and facilitator for more than 25 years in a variety of fields. His ability to approach any creative challenge with tenacity and innovation has made him a leader in the world of art, design, and theater, opening new frontiers for cross-disciplinary collaboration. He found early success as a sculptor, fabricator, and product designer and earned his BFA from Alfred University and MFA at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. His art showcases a strong juxtaposition between materials by contrasting natural functions with industrial and technological processes, Michael has formed a body of work that is incapable of stagnation, and instead explores the exponential evolution of medium and concept. Michael Sturtz founded The Crucible in 1999. michaelsturtz.com

14. Janice Peacock – Elder

2014

Sand cast glass, steel

20″ x 7″ x 5″

Opening Bid: $450

Janice Peacock has been working with glass since 1992. In 2011 she was selected to be a Visiting Artist at the Museum of Glass in Tacoma, WA, where she worked with its glass blowing team to make large versions of her small glass sculptures. She has continued her work in a large scale, learning how to use a casting process in which molten glass is ladled from a furnace into sand molds. This technique lends itself well to the ancient look of her glass masks. A pair of her glass antelope sculptures was included in the Oakland Museum of California’s “50 Years of Studio Glass” exhibition in 2012. Her work is held in the permanent collections of the Tacoma Museum of Glass, and the Corning Museum of Glass.

14. Kristen Hoard – Fractured

2011

Recycled steel plow disc

20″ x 20″ x 3″

Opening Bid: $400

Kristen Hoard’s journey with metal sculpture began in 1999 when she took her first class at The Crucible. She regularly participates in art festivals throughout Northern California, including the Palo Alto Fine Art Festival and the Crocker Art Museum Holiday show. Kristen’s work is featured in numerous Sacramento galleries including the Kennedy Gallery, The Artisan Gallery, 2110 Gallery and Patris S12. She has also completed several large corporate sculpture pieces and public artwork that can be seen around the Bay Area and Sacramento. Kristen recently finished a large lotus flower firepit for Siegfried and Roy’s home in Las Vegas.

15. Lancelot Fraser – Experimental Bottle Series #3

2015

Blown and sculpted glass

17″ x 9″ x 5″

Opening Bid: $375

Lancelot S. Fraser grew up in the small mountain community of Idyllwild, California. At an early age he learned the craft of pottery and decided that he wanted to be an artist.  Lance began working with glass at Palomar College in 2002 and in 2010 he received a BFA in Glass from California College of the Arts. Lance has attended workshops at the Pilchuck Glass School, Penland School of Crafts, Eugene Glass School, and the Appalachian Center for Crafts. He is currently the Glass Studio Manager at California College of the Arts and serves on the faculty of The Crucible.

Fund A Need

The Crucible offers free and low cost field trips, workshops and public art programs to schools and community groups from throughout the Bay Area. In order to sustain this incredible program, we must raise more than $250,000 each year. A large percentage of that money is raised during our annual Soirée and Art Auction. During the live auction guests will have the opportunity to “raise their paddle” and make a 100% tax-deductible contribution to support The Crucible’s work with youth. Every gift to this program makes an impact.

$10,000 – Fired Up Workshop Series with a school partner, serving up to 100 students in field trips and a community art project.
$5,000 – Gear Girls Workshop, a girls welding class with a school partner. Girls learn welding skills to build sculpture and design based on self-discovery and reflection, culminating in an exhibition of their work.
$2,500 – 360 student field trip in partnership with six schools. Students observe industrial art demonstrations as they relate to science, math and history.
$1,000 – Training and employment for one youth intern during the Summer Program.
$500 – One student’s annual tuition for the after school Earn–A–Bike Program in which students learn bike mechanics and earn a bicycle.
$250 – Scholarship for one Summer Camp tuition in areas such as Robots, Jewelry or Sand Casting.

1. Ed Kirshner – Fiery Apothecary

2015

Lead-crystal apothecary jar, plasma gas, Aino Aalto Iittala plate, shade base, electronics

14″ x 7″

Opening Bid: $500

Ed Kirshner of Oakland, CA was born in New York in 1940.  He studied architecture and sculpture at Cornell University, UC Berkeley and the Oskar Kokoschka School in Austria.  His glass and plasma sculptures have been exhibited throughout the US, Europe and Asia. His work is represented in Corning’s “25 Years of New Glass Review.” His sculptures are in such permanent collections as the di Rosa Fine Arts Preserve in Napa, CA and the Swiss National Science Center, near Zurich. Ed has taught in the US, Europe and Asia, is on the faculty of The Crucible in Oakland and holds a Fulbright international teaching fellowship. He served as a Trustee and the Treasurer of the Museum of Neon Art for several years and currently is on the Board of the Glass Art Society.

2. Jay Bridgland – Purple Lumier

2014

Glass

20″

Opening Bid: $400

Jay Bridgland creates blown and sculpted glass. His latest colletion of glass couture uses meticulously crafted focal pieces in the design of necklaces that elevates and redefines the concept of glass artwear. Jays bold use of color and intricate manipulation of glass in the flame creates an original style that identifies his work. Jay’s passion for the artisan hand-made process gives each necklace its individual character.

3. William Rose – Rock Garden

2014

Hammered and brazed copper

Various 5″-7″

Opening Bid: $75

William began creating art more than 35 years ago designing and building custom homes, all the while traveling to many locations throughout the United States creating Sand Sculptures. In searching for a more permanent medium, William joined The Crucible 7 years ago and started stone carving under the guidance of then instructor/master sculptor, Barry Baldwin. William continued studying stone carving in Italy and is now the stone carving instructor at The Crucible. William’s art works have expanded to include metal sculpture.

4. Christina Spann – Double Sorrento Sconce

2012

Silk and blown glass

30″ x 5″ x 6″

Opening Bid: $450

Since 1989 Christina Spann has taken glass, metal, and electricity to create Decorative Lighting Luminaries. She operated a successful company called Lightspann from 1991-2011 and now has started Pumphouse Studios. She continues to create lighting and paintings.

5. Rebecca Zemans – XL Galaxy Pendant

2014

Sterling silver, stainless steel, blue topaz

2.5″ x 2″ x 17.5″ chain

Opening Bid: $190

Rebecca Zemans is a jewelry and mixed media artist whose work can be found in public and private collections around the world. She studied at the University of Michigan, earning dual degrees in metal-smithing and cultural anthropology. From 2004-2007 Rebecca was an intern, studio member, and faculty at The Crucible where she created large scale steel and bronze sculptures. In 2007, Rebecca returned home to Chicago for a residency at the Lillstreet Art Center where she created a jewelry collection inspired by her continuing sculpture practice. Rebecca has taught at the Hyde Park Art Center and is currently a studio and faculty member of Lillstreet Art Center.

6. Daniel Stauber – Free Flow Clock

2014

Glass

11″ x 1.5″

Opening Bid: $150

Daniel Stauber studied and now teaches glass at The Crucible.  His work strives to both attract and repel, to reflect the polarities of life, and attempts to combine opposition to create emotionally stirring work. Daniel draws inspiration from the unconscious, and views art as the most sincere human endeavor.

7. Michael Bondi – Untitled

2015

Forged, recycled copper

17″ x 2″

Opening Bid: $600

Bondi Metal Design specializes in architectural and interior wrought metal, creating contemporary and classic designs in copper, bronze, stainless, aluminum and iron. The studio works collaboratively or independently to develop unique solutions for architects, designers or individuals. Commissions are undertaken worldwide for clients including Disney World, Disneyland, Euro Disney, Grand Hyatt Wailea, Donald Trump, Hendrix and Allardyce, Wolfgang Puck’s Postrio Restaurant and Alice Waters’ Chez Panisse. Michael Bondi Metal Designs has been honored with awards for excellence in design, technical detail and finish. The studio takes pride in thorough attention to detail, from the design phase through installation of the project.

8. Kristen Hoard – Crimson Moon

2011

Recycled Steel Plow Disk

20″ x 20″ x 9″

Opening Bid: $300

Kristen Hoard’s journey with metal sculpture began in 1999 when she took her first class at The Crucible. She regularly participates in art festivals throughout Northern California, including the Palo Alto Fine Art Festival and the Crocker Art Museum Holiday show. Kristen’s work is featured in numerous Sacramento galleries including the Kennedy Gallery, The Artisan Gallery, 2110 Gallery and Patris S12. She has also completed several large corporate sculpture pieces and public artwork that can be seen around the Bay Area and Sacramento. Kristen recently finished a large lotus flower firepit for Siegfried and Roy’s home in Las Vegas.

9. Private Workshop for 10

Opening Bid: $600

Bring your colleagues, friends, or family for a one-of-a-kind Crucible experience. Work with our team to design a three-hour workshop in which members of your group will work alongside each other to create individual projects. Everyone will learn new skills, explore creativity, and complete an original work of art to take home. Workshop options include blacksmithing, glass fusing, woodworking, leatherworking, clay sculpture, metalsmithing and more.