The Crystal Chronicles
The stories behind the glass
Introduction
At long last I’ve decided to begin to tell the series of stories behind a collection of interesting, beautiful, and perhaps unique pieces of glass sculptures that I’ve collected over a period now of more than 20 years!
While some of them are rather small in stature, and (maybe) delicate in their overall configuration, I’ve never referred to them as “
figurines”, most probably because I believe that it would lead to visions of petite, fragile, feminine “jewelry like” pieces to one who has not seen them. Indeed….some of my sculptures are quite “solid” in their physical appearance, definitely not fragile, and would not at all remind you of the famous Swarovski crystal art, which could be called “crystal jewelry” in some cases.
The collection consists of more than 150 pieces of Glass, Crystal and Plexiglas (two of my sailboats are Italian Plexiglas featuring spinnaker sails over 24 inches in height) in the forms of animals (birds, horses, fish, elephants, the big cats et al), objects (a top hat, a cactus, and bowl of fruit, world globes etc.) city skylines, structures (New York, Chicago, Eiffel Tower) and my sailboats, as well as a few automobiles and other “clearly beautiful” odds and ends.
I’ve collected them as individual items (via flea markets, antique malls, and the very rare retail store purchase) and I’ve had the wonderful experience of having received a significant number of really nice pieces from my many, many friends who over the years have come to know that a glass object (of any sort) will be appreciated by me, and cherished as a warm reminder of the person(s) who gave it to me.
Without a doubt, (and yes, I’m totally biased in this) my most treasured, pieces have been given to me by my daughter Jodie! The obvious reason is most evident (c’mon…she’s my daughter)….but I have to say that I was thrilled when she started giving me pieces, because for some reason I never thought that she was aware of my fascination with (and my affection for) glass art. As a matter of fact, it is because of a specific request from Jodie (okay….it might even be characterized as an order [smile]) that the writing of “The Crystal Chronicles” has finally been initiated!
I have no idea exactly how the book (should I call it a book?) will be written. I know it will not be a “definitive chronological storyline” of each piece, because I truly do not remember the order in which I acquired them. There are a few sculptures that stand out as very nice memories of little adventures and experiences and (of course) the people I associate with them. It will be very heartwarming to recount those stories as I describe the pieces, and I’m convinced that this undertaking will provide me with an incredible trip down memory lane.
I hope you’ll enjoy the photos of the pieces, and that you’ll perhaps get a kick out of the stories that will accompany them. I dedicate this volume of writing to my daughter Jodie, and thank her first of all for making me aware that she was indeed interested in knowing the history and meaning of the pieces in the collection. Second, I thank her for being so very patient, as it has taken me almost a year to begin this project after she requested it! (smile)
I could not have picked a more inspiring day to begin the chronicles…it’s her birthday today, and this very first installment the “introduction” to “The Crystal Chronicles” is my humble gift to her! I love you JoJo…..HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!
The Crystal Chronicles 