Joe Cariati - Glassblower

Artist, JOE CARIATI - In His Own Words



Merriam-Webster's dictionary defines glass as, "a usually transparent or translucent material consisting typically of a mixture of silicates." This, an elemental definition of a material, does not come close to describing how an artist takes this or any material and transforms it into something transcendent.
Joe Cariati (from his bio) states, "For me, the purity and essence of the process of glassblowing is immediate, there is a sense of urgency, the glass must be blown while it's hot! There are no breaks, there is no time to rest, no lull. My approach is to craft the glass quickly and efficiently; clean, pure, simple and beautiful."
In another line, from his bio, Mr. Cariati describes the essence of glass making, "Feather-weight, a lot of light transmission and overall clean lines are really what my glass is about. I'd love to see it float off the table."
Like contemporary architecture, Mr. Cariati's work is clear and clean and without embellishment or decoration. It maintains the integrity of the material, while  transporting it into a higher realm. At this point, the material stops being "a mixture of silicates" and starts its transformation into an object which could easily take to the air.

Photo:Sean P. Costello

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