The Crucible is participating in the 2013 East Bay Open Studios, presented annually by Pro Arts Gallery.

Our featured artists are

Barbara Barnett, Peter Kropf, Johanna Neaderhouser, Rob Nehring, Alexander Smith, Daniel Stauber, Sam Waller and Mary B. White. Read about their work below and come join them on June 1-2 and June 8-9 at our studio. 

The Crucible will also offer two

studio tours at noon and 4pm. 

	Barbara Barnett Barbara has been an artist most of her life but only recently began working in glass. In 2007, she started working with stained glass and moved through kiln formed glass to cast glass after taking a class at The Crucible in Oakland, CA.  Her work reflects the natural world she sees around her, combining her love of nature and a passion for art. Creating a glass sculpture starting with a clay or wax model is always a journey of discovery.  Her geeky side loves the physics of glass, the problem solving, and the complexity of the process.  Her emotional side loves the observation and discovery of the form, the surprise at the outcome, and discovering new aspects of myself through the process. Website: barbarabarnettglass.com
	Peter Kropf Peter Kropf is fascinated with all forms of fire and its ability to transform. He creates sculptures with a variety of materials, and often seeks to include fire as a focal point. He is always looking for different and interesting ways to share his joy of fire with the community at large. Peter can often be found at The Crucible working as a Senior Studio Manager and setting pyrotechnic effects for Crucible productions. In his spare time, he is known to drag chaos through their IT Department. Website: practicalfirearts.com
	Johanna Neaderhouser Johanna Neaderhouser has been a woodworker since 2010 having enrolled in the Distance Mastery Program at the Northwest Woodworking Studio. She has recently started teaching woodworking classes at The Crucible.
	Rob Nehring Rob Nehring received his BFA from the University of Milwaukee, Wisconsin in Inter-arts, which included theatre, dance and sculpture. After professionally dancing for 17 years and 18 years in the candy business, he dropped everything to take a class at The Crucible. Driven by the definition of sculpture as “something you back into when looking at a painting,” he strives to produce thought-provoking, yet whimsical work in three dimensions. An accomplished artist, Rob’s sculptures are in galleries and private collections throughout the United States. His sculptures are created from 99% recycled materials. Through found scrap materials, Rob lets the materials dictate what they will become. Rob runs Rusty Noodle Studios, teaches and is the Adult Program Director at The Crucible. Website:

 

Could blowing glass cost you less and be more environmentally friendly? 

Join Hugh Jenkins, renowned Hawaiian glass art educator, artist and expert in glass studio efficiency, to learn tips for use of renewable energy, alternative fuels such as reclaimed cooking oil and energy efficiency in a glass hot shop.

Friday, May 31, 2013
6:30-9 pm
The Crucible, 1260 7th Street, Oakland, CA
FREE

Hugh Jenkins’s studio, Big Island Glass, is considered a nationally leading glass shop in the use of renewable energy, reclaimed cooking oil and energy efficiency.  Hugh has consulted and assisted hot studios with energy efficiency throughout the US. He is in the Bay Area retuning Lee Meltier’s furnace for higher efficiency and has graciously agreed to share his information on recuperation, his innovative use of bio fuels and other techniques with our community.

• • 6:30-7:30 pm  Potluck (please bring a dish to share)
  • 7:30-8:30 pm  Hugh Jenkins presentation
  • 8:30-9:00 pm  Q&A and discussion

This event is free, open to the public and co-sponsored by The Crucible and BioGlass.org. BioGlass’s mission is to feature research, development and community resources for eco-efficient glass studio techniques, which simultaneously assists glass artists to make more profit and protect the environment.

Hugh Jenkins and Stephanie Ross, a husband and wife team of Big Island Glass Gallery, have blown glass on the Big Island of Hawaii since 1999, after leaving long teaching careers in Honolulu, Stephanie at Holy Nativity and Hugh at Punahou School. Since 2001 they have collaborated in their home based studio in Honoka’a.  They established Big Island Glass Gallery in 2004.   It is located in the old sugar plantation town of Honoka’a, on the Hamakua coast of the Big Island of Hawai’i. Paintings and fine crafts by other local artists are also featured.  In their glass, Hugh and Stephanie work in response to their surroundings and reflect the ever-changing water, volcano, forest, landscape, and climate of the Big Island.

Questions? Please contact Mary White at 510 847-4916 or [email protected]

Event Location & Directions

The Crucible
1260 7th Street
Oakland, CA 94607

>> Directions

Parking

The Crucible has a very small parking lot on the corner of 7th & Union that will be available for disabled placard parking only. Those spaces are available on a first-come, first-serve basis. There are also two paid parking lots. One is on Kirkham Avenue and the other is the 5th Street lot by BART. Please do not park in lots owned by local businesses or the residential area behind The Crucible.

Public Transit

Ditch the car and don’t worry about parking – The Crucible

Artifact: The Crucible at the Asian Art Museum

Fridays–Sundays, March 15–May 5, 2013
Noon to 4pm
Asian Art Museum, Ground Floor, Resource Room, Vinson Nook
200 Larkin Street, San Francisco
FREE with museum admission

What would you take to the afterlife? The Crucible in partnership with UC Berkeley’s Archaeology Research Facility (A.R.F.), is excited to tackle this ancient question in the San Francisco Asian Art Museum’s series, “Asia Alive,”a free, interactive, all ages program featuring live art demonstrations, hands-on activities and discussions. 

The series focuses on the museum’s exhibition, “China’s Terracotta Warriors: The First Emperor’s Legacy,” which explores the young Emperor’s worldview, enduring influence and fixation on the afterlife. Although he died in 210 BCE, his legacy lives on through his terracotta warriors. 

The Crucible invites you to reflect on your own life using imagination and skill, transforming timeless raw materials with the stamp of your own individuality. Participants will investigate ancient artistic techniques used for creating afterlife treasures, including glass fusing jewelry, ceramics, and hammering to create their own afterlife pendant.

• Copper charms: Copper, a common material in this exhibition, was used throughout history. Starting with a piece of raw copper, you will use letters and decorative stamping as embellishments to create an artifact that will function as a charm for a keychain or pendant for a necklace.
• Art Clay Copper: This innovative material, Art Clay Copper, looks, feels and works like ordinary clay, but when fired in a kiln or with a torch its clay binders burn off, leaving 99.9% pure copper. Today, you will make an artifact by manipulating copper clay through rolling and fashioning texture to create a unique charm. Art Clay Copper donated by Art Clay World, USA.
• Moldmaking: The terracotta warriors were among the earliest examples of the use of sophisticated reproduction methods. Moldmaking is the most common technique used for reproduction. Starting with clay, you will fashion an artifact that will then be vacuum molded to produce a symbolic negative copy in plastic.
• Video footage from renowned Crucible faculty, including foundry artist Nick DiPhillipo and blacksmith artist Carla Hall, round out the series. 

Artifact is a phenomenal opportunity to explore the First Emperor’s life in a hands-on, community oriented fashion. Between archaeological discussions, artistic explorations, and your own reflections about the afterlife, Asia Alive is sure to inspire creativity in everyone.

Saturday, Nov 10 and Sunday November 11 – 10am to 6pm
Saturday, Nov 10 – 6-9pm

This year marks the 50-year anniversary of the Studio Glass movement in the United States. Come join us in celebrating California artists’ contributions to the studio glass movement on November 10th and 11th at the Crucible in Oakland, CA.

Click here to visit the official event website.

This Crucible event is part of a national movement to celebrate this anniversary. The program follows the tradition of the California Glass Exchanges. San Jose State University glass instructor Dr. Fritz and his student George Jercich started the Glass Exchange with the goal of gathering the California glass community together to share skills and techniques.

 

PROGRAM
Saturday, Nov 10 and Sunday November 11 – 10am to 6pm

EXHIBITION RECEPTION AND AWARD CEREMONY
Saturday, Nov 10 – 6-9pm

KEYNOTES
Suellen Fowler, Marvin Lipofsky, Richard Marquis, Susan Stimsmuehlen-Amend

 

• Demonstrations in the Crucible’s six glass studios: blowing, cold working, fusing, casting, neon and flame working areas.
• Panels and lectures featuring California glass artists who began working in each decade.
• Two-day Pop up exhibition of California glass artists 10-5 pm.
• Reception and Awards ceremony honoring contributions to the California glass community is scheduled for 6-9 pm Saturday Nov. 10. Honoring collectors, including Dorothy Saxe and artists who have contributed to our movement.
• Add your information to the “Living Glass Timeline” that will be created during the two-day event. We welcome glass artists of all decades who have worked in California to download and complete a Registration Form for inclusion on ourDirectory of California Glass Artists. See our website below.

 

• General Admission $15 per day
• Crucible Members and Students $10 per day
• To purchase tickets and reserve your spot, visit californiastudioglass.eventbrite.com

 

Partially Sponsored by: The Crucible, The Glass Alliance of Northern California, the Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass, Denny Abrams, the Glass Art Society, and the Clay and Glass Arts Foundation.

Studio Glass Movement

The studio glass movement was founded in 1962, when artist Harvey Littleton gathered a group of artists, craftspeople, scientists and scholars at the Toledo Museum of Art for a series of hot glass workshops that demonstrated that glass could be made into art in the artist’s studio rather than in an industrial setting. At the same time, starting in 1962, glass art classes and programs began to be established at colleges and universities in California. Come help us celebrate the history and future of California glass artists and innovators.

Teaching the History

Make this 50-year anniversary part of your curriculum for this semester. The Oakland Museum and California College of the Arts are also sponsoring exhibitions and events to celebrate this anniversary and California glass artists. Keep an eye on our website. We will be adding additional links and resources in the coming weeks to help you highlight other events celebrating the American Studio Glass movement.

The Crucible
1260 7th Street
Oakland, CA 95607

www.theCrucible.org

A Pop-Up Creative Commons in West Oakland featuring Art, Food Trucks, Performances, People & Pumpkins.

Beginning October 4, 2012, the 24,000 square-foot vacant lot full of weeds at the corner of Mandela Parkway and West Grand will be transformed into a creative community space filled with art and commerce. For three months this fall, The Peralta Junction Project will change the nature of weekends in West Oakland, utilizing the strong local opportunities for our often-challenged neighborhood. The project team will clean up and activate the space through art installations, creative workshops, local performing arts programming, micro retail shops featuring local artisans, Oakland-based food trucks, and a tented creative commons.

As we’re an integral part of the West Oakland Industrial Arts Cooridor, The Crucible will be hosting workshops for West Oakland youth on several of the Thursdays and Fridays while the space is open. These workshops will feature copper metalworking as well as learning how to work with light emitting diodes (LEDs). We’ll be tayloring our programming in conjunction with the many other organizations running workshops.

In addition to the workshops, we’ll also be taking over one of the 25 canvas tents to create The Crucible Artist Pop-Up Store, open every Saturday and Sunday 10-6pm. At the Pop-Up Store you’ll be able to browse through works by artists at The Crucible, all of which will be for sale!

Grand opening is this weekend, October 6th & 7th, with a host of installations and performances to kick off the project.

To learn more visit www.PeraltaJunction.com.