SEQUIM — Sheri Cox Whetstine’s glass designs and Steve Wry’s ceramics will be featured at the Blue Whole Gallery in August.
Work by the two will be showcased in the front windows of the gallery at 129 W. Washington St., in Sequim in an exhibit called Joy in the World with an Element of Whimsy.
Gallery hours are from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and form 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday. The gallery adheres to the Clallam County Public Health guidelines.
The public can meet the artists at 5 p.m. Friday during the First Friday Art Walk.
Whetstine has worked with glass since 2006.
“I love how a solid, flat piece of glass can be, merely by adding heat, transformed into a thing of beauty, either by intent or chance,” she said in a press release.
“I love the predictable unpredictability of warm glass.”
Each piece of glass is designed, hand-cut, assembled, fused, then slumped or draped (bent into or over a mold).
Most pieces, whether large or small, have upwards of 80 hours invested in their creation, Whetstrine said.
The fusing process takes about 20 hours and reaches a peak temperature of 160 degrees Fahrenheit, depending on the process. The slumping or draping process also takes on average 14 to 20 hours, sometimes much longer.
“Each piece of glass is completely original as it is nearly impossible to recreate the same piece twice, no matter how hard I try,” the artist said.
“And while I do continue to produce pieces that are inspired by my imagination, I also am happy to work with clients on commissions and help bring their ideas to fruition.
Stay for lunch by Steve Wry will be featured at the Blue Whole Gallery beginning in August.
“I love to share my ideas about what might be out there in the world that we just are not aware of. Who knows what’s out there?
“I try to approach each piece with an element of whimsy and a fervent desire to not take myself or my work too seriously.”
Wry works with low-fire clay and glaze as well as Raku and salt firing.
He attended California State University in Fullerton, where he majored in ceramics, minored in art history and graduated with a bachelor’s in fine arts.
For more information, see http://www.bluewhole gallery.com.
