Ever since Bohemia replaced Venice as the world's top glass-making town in the 17th century, Czech glass has become synonymous with fine quality. However, it was not until 50 years ago that the studio glass movement in Czechoslovakia transformed glass works from decorative to fine art. Behind this breakthrough in glassmaking was Stanislav Libensky.
Libensky and His School, (布拉格之玻光璃影) a touring exhibition which opened yesterday at Taipei Fine Arts Museum, pays tribute to the glass sculptor who died of lung cancer in February at the age of 80.
Forty-three artists contribute to the exhibition of 118 works. All of them were Libensky's students. Head of the Specialized School of Glassmaking in Zelezny Bord and of the Academy of Decorative Arts in Prague, the two major schools for glassmaking, Libensky had great influence on the Czech glassmaking scene.
PHOTO COURTESY OF TFAM
Integrating light into his glass works, Libensky once said that glass, being translucent, is the vessel of light. A successful glass sculptor knows how to direct light into the interior of a piece of glass to create a fourth dimension.
Sometimes, this means a subtle cut in the right place. Bretislav Novak Jr.'s Unusual Plate would have been a plain blue surface but for two slight curves cutting the plate halfway. The slight hollow plays tricks with light and creates brilliant layers of blue.
"Czech glass works are quite low-key compared with the colorful and glamorous Italian glass. The works look simple at a glance but show their ingenuity through one tiny detail in an otherwise neglectable place," said Wang Xia-chun (
Works like Petr Nemec's Object 1 and Ilja Bilek's Glaze integrate light to highlight their geometrical structure.
These large works seem simple but were in fact technically challenging, according to Wang, a glass artist with Tittot.
Moreover, Libensky and his students make use of glass pieces of various thickness to create optical magic.
Ladislav Oliva Jr's Gate to the Sees was inspired by footprint fossils of prehistoric animals. The different thickness in different parts of the the moss-green glass piece creates various shades of green, bringing the footprint to life.
There was one Libensky work on show. Collaborating with his wife Jaroslava Brychtova, as in most of his works, Libensky reflected on his fate after being diagnosed with cancer in Vestment II.
"Together with the endangerment of one of our lives, I realized that we have in ourselves an energy that helps us handle desperate situations. The light in out sculptures became the light of my hope," Libensky was quoted as saying last year.
Devoid of vibrant color, the grey glass piece is cut through by a tunnel that lets in light, which appears to edge ahead amid the murky surroundings. The sublime work illustrates Libensky's glass theory.
That US assistance was a model for Taiwan’s spectacular development success was early recognized by policymakers and analysts. In a report to the US Congress for the fiscal year 1962, former President John F. Kennedy noted Taiwan’s “rapid economic growth,” was “producing a substantial net gain in living.” Kennedy had a stake in Taiwan’s achievements and the US’ official development assistance (ODA) in general: In September 1961, his entreaty to make the 1960s a “decade of development,” and an accompanying proposal for dedicated legislation to this end, had been formalized by congressional passage of the Foreign Assistance Act. Two
Despite the intense sunshine, we were hardly breaking a sweat as we cruised along the flat, dedicated bike lane, well protected from the heat by a canopy of trees. The electric assist on the bikes likely made a difference, too. Far removed from the bustle and noise of the Taichung traffic, we admired the serene rural scenery, making our way over rivers, alongside rice paddies and through pear orchards. Our route for the day covered two bike paths that connect in Fengyuan District (豐原) and are best done together. The Hou-Feng Bike Path (后豐鐵馬道) runs southward from Houli District (后里) while the
President William Lai’s (賴清德) March 13 national security speech marked a turning point. He signaled that the government was finally getting serious about a whole-of-society approach to defending the nation. The presidential office summarized his speech succinctly: “President Lai introduced 17 major strategies to respond to five major national security and united front threats Taiwan now faces: China’s threat to national sovereignty, its threats from infiltration and espionage activities targeting Taiwan’s military, its threats aimed at obscuring the national identity of the people of Taiwan, its threats from united front infiltration into Taiwanese society through cross-strait exchanges, and its threats from
March 31 to April 6 On May 13, 1950, National Taiwan University Hospital otolaryngologist Su You-peng (蘇友鵬) was summoned to the director’s office. He thought someone had complained about him practicing the violin at night, but when he entered the room, he knew something was terribly wrong. He saw several burly men who appeared to be government secret agents, and three other resident doctors: internist Hsu Chiang (許強), dermatologist Hu Pao-chen (胡寶珍) and ophthalmologist Hu Hsin-lin (胡鑫麟). They were handcuffed, herded onto two jeeps and taken to the Secrecy Bureau (保密局) for questioning. Su was still in his doctor’s robes at
RSS