Bring your artistic flair to MarinMOCA and participate in their glass tile project on Saturday, April 8 & Sunday, April 9 from noon to 4pm at MarinMOCA (Ron Collins Gallery), 500 Palm Drive in Novato. Each Museum visitor will receive one clear glass tile, and will be asked to use it as a canvas to create a nature inspired piece. Glass embellishment material will be provided to decorate your tile. After each tile is complete, the artists will fuse it in the kiln to complete the piece. Each tile will then be mounted on the wall, creating a community quilt which will be exhibited in the entry way to the Museum. This community tapestry provides a visual connection to each person that participates in the project, and reflects the artist's desire to start a dialogue concerning the importance of social awareness and environmental stewardship. 

This activity is suitable for ages 5 and up (children should have adult supervision).

Meet the Artists in Residence 2017 at MarinMOCA:

The Marin Museum of Contemporary Art has awarded two Bay Area Glass Artists the first residency in 2017, January through June. Demetra Theofanous and Dean Bensen are glass sculptors who utilize nature as a vehicle to communicate environmental challenges, and metaphors for the human experience. Their work connects the viewer with the story of the natural world, and instills an appreciation for its interconnectedness to man, and its inherent fragility. Glass is a material well-suited to convey this fragility that exists. This common thread in their work will intertwine in a new body of collaborative work--creating wall tapestries from woven glass. Through repetition of the woven form, they will create works made up of hundreds of strands of glass. This art-making duo will be creating this tapestry during their MarinMOCA residency. The public is invited to visit them in Studio M, Building 789 on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday from 11am-5pm, through June.

Demetra Theofanous developed a method of weaving glass on the torch, and combines this technique with cast glass in her work. She has been internationally recognized for her glass nest and flora sculptures, and is included in numerous private collections as well as the permanent collection of the Racine Art Museum. She has taught at top glass institutions around the country, and has exhibited her work internationally.

Dean Bensen's sculpture began with his Redwood Tree series, which was featured at the Oakland Museum of California. He has evolved his work over the years, with his first solo show being featured in the San Francisco Chronicle. His sculpture expressed the beauty of nature, and it's life cycles. He has taught extensively for two decades, attended Dale Chihuly's Pilchuck Glass School on Scholarship, and helped create one of Dale Chihuly's famous chandeliers in Dubai.

More info at marinmoca.org