Glass and Glitter

The nature of the glass being mainly transparent/translucent, however, it has opalescent qualities. Glass illuminates light beautifully either through the material (transplant) or reflects on its surface (opalescent), Glitter sparkling shiny particles attached to the surface of artwork, dispersing colorful flickering light outward from the art-works. Our vision of the concrete artwork is blurred due to the illusions created by shinny glitter.  

We can easily imagine how interesting this Glass and Glitter show could be, noticing the  contrasting quality each medium presents.

History of Glass and Glitter: 

Glass making dates back to at least 3,600 years ago in Mesopotamia. However, most writers claim that they may have been producing copies of glass objects from Egypt. Other archaeological evidence suggests that the first true glass was made in coastal north Syria, Mesopotamia or Egypt.

Glass is an amorphous (non-crystalline) compound. Because it is often transparent and chemically inert, glass has found widespread practical, technological usage, and an art form In the 20th century, Harvey Littleton was the one of the founders of studio glass art movement which saw the emerging of Glass as a fine art form.

Glitter‘s history also spans from ancient civilizations using natural materials like mica and crushed beetles to modern glitter.

Modern Glitter was invented in the 1930s by Henry Ruschmann, a German immigrant and machinist. While working on a machine to cut photo films, Ruschmann noticed the small, shiny pieces of cellulose developed a process for cutting plastic into tiny, sparkly pieces that were being generated when the machine malfunctioned. His employees used these fragments as Christmas decorations, leading Ruschmann to see the potential for a decorative material. He developed a machine to cut photo films and paper, and sometimes the machine would “stutter,” generating small, shiny pieces of glossy cellulose. Thus, Ruschmann’s invention made glitter more accessible and affordable, and his company, Meadowbrook Inventions, is still a major producer of glitter today.

Modern Glitter is usually made up of hundreds – even thousands or tens of thousands – of tiny pieces of various materials from copolymer plastic and aluminum foil, titanium dioxide and iron oxides or sometimes other materials such as mica, stones and insects. Glitter‘s color and texture depends on how it’s made, such as whether it’s coated with chemicals or cut to different sizes. Fine artists started incorporating glitter into their art makings attracting attention to delight or surprise the beholders.

A ban on glitter made of polyethylene terephthalate (PETE) and aluminum, as it is a microplastic that can leach hormonal disruptors into the environment. Furthermore, plastic glitter takes about one thousand years to biodegrade. As glitter or spices are hydrophobic, they do not dissolve in water like salt or sugar would. Thus, it has become one of today’s serious environmental concerns.