Photograph by Ed Pollard, Hasselblad H4D50 - 2020.

Images(2)

Storm Eater

Artist Barbara Earl Thomas (American, born 1948)

CultureAmerican

Date2018

MediumBlown and sandblasted glass

Dimensions8 × 11 × 11 in. (20.3 × 27.9 × 27.9 cm)

PortfolioStory Vessels series

Credit LineMuseum purchase

Object number2020.21

On View

Chrysler Museum of Art, Warehouse (BSW), Bay01, Rge11 Unit107-Sh03

DescriptionLarge blown and sandblasted glass vase. The vase has a truncated cylinder shape with slightly flared walls. The vessel is blown from two overlaid glass colors: opaque black (colored by gathering frit) over transparent pale aqua, which is slightly darker in hue near the base and then fades towards the rim. The exterior surface has been sandblasted, removing the black glass layer to reveal the aqua layer beneath, which enables the figurative imagery on the vase to be easily seen. The central scene swirls with clouds, lightning bolts, and the words “STORM EATER” and HIGH WINDS.” Six human figures are visible. Two slightly larger figures stand amidst the clouds and words, and they blow or swallow the wind and storm clouds. Other, smaller figures appear nearer the base of the vessel, clinging to rooftops and tossed by stormy seas. The exterior base of the vessel also displays imagery: swirling clouds, the silhouette of a person blowing wind from her mouth, and the words “BLOW HARD;” the black glass has been entirely sandblasted away in the center of the base, but the imagery is still legible.
ProvenancePurchased from Claire Oliver Gallery, New York, by the Chrysler Museum, September 2020.Exhibition HistoryPulse Miami Art Fair, 2018.Published ReferencesThe Corning Museum of Glass, "Recent Important Acquisitions from Collections Worldwide," in _New Glass Review_ 2022, no. 42, p.114.