Growing up in a small town on Whidbey Island in the heart of the Puget Sound of Washington State, Jason Christian was almost destined to fall in love with glass art. Originally he believed he was bound for a blue-collar career; he was a truck-driver and worked various odd jobs until the age of 21 when, after following a suggestion from his mother, who read about hot shops in a magazine, Christian found and fell in love with the medium that would become his trademark – glass.
As Christian came of age in his 20’s, so did the glass art movement around him. He was surrounded by the biggest and best names in glass art while at home in Seattle, Washington. He began his training and subsequent career as a batch charger, ensuring the raw materials enter the furnace correctly and result in the desired batch of glass. The glass art scene in Seattle was in full force and becoming a destination for artists and collectors, evolving right alongside Christian himself.
During that time, Jason learned via his assistance to artists including Lino Tagliapietra, Martin Blank, Preston Singletary, and Nancy Callan. He has been a part of Chihuly’s team for almost a decade now, where he has had the opportunity to work alongside other skilled artists, including Jim Mongrain and the late Pino Signoretto.
Green Reticello Vessel, in the gallery.
Christian also honed his skills through residencies, at the Corning Glass Museum, the Pilchuck Glass School, and the Museum of Glass in Tacoma, WA, as well as sharing his expertise through demonstrating internationally in Turkey, and Finland, as well as in the United States at Pilchuck, Urban Glass, and the Penland School of Craft. While he has become familiar with many of the best hot shops in the United States, it is in his own Seattle studio next to his home where he creates commissions for other artists as well as his own unique works.
While the normally bustling city of Seattle turned into what Christian described as a “ghost town” during quarantine he was able to keep busy. Christian works in his studio, which he built slowly over several years, inside what was once a detached garage. Residing in a small section of the large “Best Family Farm”, Christian has put much of his own time into improving and personalizing the home over the years.
As he is currently getting back to his role in the Chihuly Studio, Christian can see things changing actively throughout the glass medium as he works “we are taking extra measures to distance as much as we can and we’re all wearing either a face shield or a mask and the team is much smaller than before … maybe half the size” Christian remarks. “It’s weird, because I started blowing glass at the height of what we know as the Seattle glass scene, now we are seeing it change along with the city itself, and it is all (changing) dramatically.” Going on to explain the way he learned just over 20 years ago, by riding his bike into downtown and showing up in Seattle Studios (which were in abundance at the time due to low rents in the city of Seattle and the booming success of Pilchuck) taking whatever available spot he could to learn from experience or observation, “wouldn’t be possible today”.
Detail of reticello.
In Christian’s work, we see the result of years of practice and technical study under Italian masters combined with the spirit of a modern American boldness which runs through the heart of Seattle. The Italian influence can surely be found in Christian’s work with his use of the classical Venetian technique of reticello. Two separate bowl forms with cane-work, combined hot, one inside the other, trapping hundreds of tiny bubbles of air, one between each crisscrossed cane. Christian most notably uses the technique to develop a series of work referencing 18th century Fabergé imperial coronation eggs, objects known for the intricacy of their small, ornate adornment.
Christian’s eggs are scaled up to be large, blown forms carefully rounded, embellished with sculpted shapes. Jason says that creating the reticello egg is some of his most challenging work, and a “labor of love”, tested by getting the reticello tight and consistent, the proportions correct, and the gold leaf clean and level. Many of Christian’s works are clear or white, leaving the viewer with the impression of a lace-like pattern. When he incorporates color, it is with obvious intention, resulting in a stunning, modern boldness. The effect is a tribute to the inherent beauty of classically designed glass originating in Italy centuries ago, beautifully juxtaposed with a contemporary, innovative creativity.
Video of Yo-yo.
In a recent conversation with the artist, he told a heartwarming story about his newest series, Yo-Yo. It is about the small gestures, which make big impressions, that we carry with us…
Growing up on in a remote town on Whidbey Island, Jason lived with his father due to the divorce of his parents. His mother lived in Manhattan, and as a young boy, the first time he visited her in the city, he was completely taken with everything there, as you can imagine. He met his step-father for the first time, who bought him one of those two toned yo-yo’s, and taught him how to work it. That memory has stayed with him throughout his life, and with the approaching birth of his own, first child this past August, he has titled one of the sculptures, Around the Corner. It’s a nice circle of reflection, not only in regard to the birth of his own son, but also a nod to the fact that his mother gave him the impetus to try his hand at glass!
