“Transparent Bottle”
Nicholas Kekic

My personal definition of hell is a world in all black and white. That’s why I especially love the exuberant colors of glass artists. When I come across glass objects dressed in brilliant reds, yellows, and blues, I want to take them home and redecorate my living room!

Nick Kekic is one of the glass artists we are oh-so-proud to represent here at The Guild. Nick comes by his art talents naturally; his grandfather was an industrial glassmaker, and his father a studio glassmaker.

Nick creates his simple forms by combining ancient glassblowing methods with new ideas and aesthetics. He continues the rich heritage of this 2,000 year-old art form, and gives us beautiful glass forms in colors that take the breath away.

“Plum Blossom”
Joan Weissman

The artist who conspires to help us create the artful home and life says, “Use my art.” The handwoven rug is, of course, beautiful and beautifully made and could be hung on the wall and viewed as a painting. But the rug was made to be walked on, to warm floors, and to soothe tired feet; it invites us to sit on it with friends, to wrestle on it with grandchildren. Its beauty enhances, rather than interferes, with its function.

“Large Lip Bowl”
Peter Karner
Photo by Scott D.W. Smith.

The philosopher John Dewey, in his 1934 book, Art as Experience, lamented the American habit of putting art on a “remote pedestal.” He wrote, “When an art product once attains classic status, it somehow becomes isolated from the human conditions under which it was brought into being…”

Now, I’m the first person to enjoy and appreciate museum exhibitions. I serve on the board of my local museum, and believe that the institution adds a great deal to my community.

But, art to me is a living, breathing thing. And, luckily for all of us, there is a growing nucleus of artists creating exciting products for the home — artwork we can live with and use on a daily basis.

Peter Karner’s ceramic bowl graces my life, as I use it to serve everything from salads to rice to vegetables. This piece of art sits on a pedestal, but the pedestal is my dining room table instead of a museum pedestal.