These bold cast glass, cut glass and steel sculptures look like glacial shards or crystal formations that have burst through their metal foundations. While North Carolina artist Alex Gabriel Bernstein grew up in the middle of the studio glass movement (his parents are glass artists Katherine and William Bernstein) he initially chose a career working with children in a psychiatric hospital after graduating from college.
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Splintered Block, cast, cut lead glass, fused steel
Stance, cast, cut lead glass, fused steel
Compression, cast, cut lead glass, fused steel
Eventually Bernstein found his way back to the glass world, studying under Czech artist František Janák, and obtaining an M.F.A. in glass sculpture from the School for American Crafts at Rochester Institute of Technology. His website showcases an extensive portfolio – each luminous sculpture more exciting than the last.
Flesh Bridge, cast, cut lead glass, fused steel
Detail, glass
An explorer at heart, Bernstein describes his work in an artist statement found at Patrajdas Contemporary Art:
“I feel as if I am an explorer. With each piece I make I prepare for a journey, I have a general idea where I want to go, but I never know where the path will lead me. Each piece I work on I set out in the hopes of discovering something new and exciting. As any explorer my journeys are filed with ups and downs, disappointments and breakthroughs, however with each piece I am sure to gain knowledge and insight which is the excitement that brings me to my studio every day.” Alex Bernstein
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Amazing! They have that beautiful but dangerous quality like glaciers or ice caves which makes it all the more interesting that he says he feels like he is an explorer.
Not only is the work expressive of a magical journey, but the artist statement reflects, without ‘artspeak’, how explorer Alex Gabriel Bernstein feels and thinks.