Now that the awards ceremony is complete, we can reveal our newest blown glass award, The 2015 Chesley; bestowed each year to leaders in the genré by the Association of Science Fiction & Fantasy Artists. It is a fitting addition to our portfolio of unique and imaginative awards and a companion to both the 2014 Hugo and The Planetary Society Cosmos Award; most recently presented to Theoretical Physicist Prof. Stephen Hawking.
It is named after Chesley Bonestell, the Father of Modern Space Art. As you know, Joy and I are both Space Artists in our own right. We live in Chesley's adopted home town of Carmel, California and carry on his quest to inspire and educate in the areas of astronomy, space exploration and spaceflight.
The inspiration for the design came from Chesley himself. Saturn was his favorite object. He painted it more than any other and those works are the most remembered and revered. It was a natural choice to create a design in glass that would embody this love.
As always, our design process begins with a high fidelity 3D model. It helps us to fully flesh out the shape and experience the completed sculpture. Along the way, we also uncover possible pitfalls that would hamper arriving at a successful completion.
Once we are satisfied with the design, and the client agrees, we move into production. It is then that we learn of the various things that serendipity provides along the way. Some are welcome, although may not be immediately recognized as such, and some are serious roadblocks that stall the operation altogether until solutions can be developed to overcome them. Glass has a mind of its own and learning what it is thinking is part of the glass blowing process that helps one to grow as a glass artist... and as a human being. The glass has a way of teaching the glassblower about him/her self that can be quite humbling.
Perseverance and dedication always pay off and we are rewarded with a glorious creation. We trust that you will agree.
The sculpture base is a blown glass crystal hemisphere; approximately 5" (12.7cm) in diameter; exhibiting an embedded Universe of stars above a planetary chord. Resting atop it is a blown glass Saturn. Its rings are approximately 6" (15.2cm) in diameter. The oblate planet sphere's equatorial diameter is 2.6" (6.54cm) made from five colors of crystal.
We are delighted with it and honored to be part of his legacy.
Tags: 3D model, art and science, art glass, glassblowing, space
Short URL for this post:
RSS - Posts
