Henry Richardson
Born 1961, Syracuse, NY
Lives and works in Easthampton, MA
Mortal Coil, 2003, chiseled glass, 7’ x 13” x 12”, Lent by the artist
Chiseled Orb, 2004, chiseled glass, 48” diameter, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Perri C. Petricca
Henry Richardson uses glass to explore geometric shapes that are created with careful attention to surface and color. Glass in its everyday use may be considered an invisible medium, in that one tends to look through it at what lies beyond, but Richardson explores its dense physicality. Mortal Coil and Chiseled Orb are each composed of half-inch layered glass plates fused by a clear adhesive. The artist chisels the surface, then carefully smoothes it until safe to the touch, yet still rough. Richardson chips glass in the manner that most artists chisel stone, but unlike stone sculptors he works the material in a reductive and additive manner simultaneously, layering the glass while chipping it away to create texture. This texture refracts light, adding tactile and visual interest. The broken surface also serves a visceral function, reminding the viewer of the inherent potential danger of the surface of the sculpture. In spite of being large sculptures, Mortal Coil and Chiseled Orb retain a light feel, their mass visually reduced by the translucency of the glass. Light passes through each work forming colors that change throughout the day. Each work, at times, has a crystalline or ice-like quality imparting a sense of both timelessness and impermanence. It is these contradictions that the artist sees as the basis for meaning in his work. While the surface is sharp we are safe because of the artist's touch that has gently smoothed the edges. The process of his work, Richardson believes, has metaphorical value as well. The basic element of construction is broken glass, which, much like the human psyche and spirit, is formed out of the fusing of shattered elements into a larger beautiful whole.
