Illuminated Places

Perhaps more than any other medium glass has a magical, dynamic quality that allows it to reflect, refract and reveal the moods, light and intensity of the world around us. "Illuminated Places" juxtaposes our intimate relationships with natural and human landscapes with the practical day-to-day spaces in which the work is installed. The complex interplay between glass and its environment erases the barriers between these two worlds. The landscapes in each piece are naturally relocated into the spaces they inhabit: a change in light or emotion in the environment of the viewer becomes mirrored deep within each glass landscape of each delicate piece.

My artworks are contemplations of visual and perceptual relationships. The proximity and interaction of subjects are explored through the juxtaposition of images, content and wordplay provided though the titles. Subject matter and images are often from times and places independent of each other which brew and converge in an eventual connection. Themes of solitude, silence, harmony, perseverance, hardiness and rootedness repeat in a visual language of materials ranging from pencil, watercolour and acrylic to metal, wood and glass. They are observances, messages, suggestions and reminders and provide a vital link between myself and others.

The Centre Gallery – Calgary, AB
“Grande Dames of Innovation”– mixed media wall sculpture (International Women’s Day Celebration)

Canmore Public Art Gallery – Canmore, AB “CAAG 20TH Anniversary Show” (Canmore Artists and Artisans Guild Fused glass

Centre 64 (Kimberley Arts Council)– Kimberley, BC “Windows to the Soul” – Wooden Quilt piece (collaborative artwork)

The Centre Gallery – Calgary, AB “Portraits of the self” – Acrylic painting (International Women’s Day Celebration)

Artisans Gallery – Calgary, AB “Art Walk ’99” – Fused Glass, Jewellery

Women’s Art Resource Centre – Toronto, ON “WARC Quilt Project” – Quilt piece(Artists collaborative piece)

Whyte Museum – Banff, AB “CAAG 10TH Anniversary Show”(Canmore Artists and Artisans Guild)Fused glass

Calgary Sketch Club – Calgary, AB

Private collections – Canada & the U.S.A

Visual Arts Travel Grant, Alberta Culture – New York Study Trip (A.C.A. students)

Winner of Design Competition, Calgary Lion’s Club – Pin Design Competition

Calgary Sketch Club Scholarship, Calgary Sketch Club

Bow Valley This Week – Tuesday, Dec 11
“Canmore art scene is active”
(Mark Morris)

The Calgary Herald – Friday, April 8
“Designers Turn Their Talents To ‘Cheep’ Housing” – Flights of Fancy
(Paula Gustafson)

“ Using my own photographs for inspiration, I enjoy the challenge of interpreting scenes of nature with glass. This medium has a magical quality – always transformed by the transmitted and reflected light.”
Joan Cobb-Beaumont

Born in Ontario, Joan Cobb-Beaumont studied glass working at Sheridan College School of Craft and Design. Following her graduation from this program in 1979, she settled in Alberta.
Joan gained valuable experience through the restoration and creation of commissioned works while employed at three of the major glass studios in Calgary: the Rubaiyat, Glass Effects and, Avanti Art and Glass Co. Currently, she creates unique pieces of glass from her home-based studio in Calgary, applying various techniques, including leading, copperfoiling, sandblasting and fusing. Her works have been displayed and sold at shows and galleries in Alberta, British Columbia and Ontario, and are found in private collections throughout Canada, England, Australia and New Zealand. Travel is an important influence in her life, shared with her husband and 2 children.

Colors, colors and more colors; superimposed and juxtaposed from one season to the next, from morning to night, from urban to rural.

I was born in Quebec City and educated as a shoe designer / pattern maker in France and Italy. My interest in Glass as a medium for art was fashioned while visiting renowned European Churches. While self-taught and starting as a hobby in 1985, Glass Art has been my sole profession and passion for the last 10 years (while raising two wonderful boys).My techniques include traditional leaded glass; copper foil, painted glass and most recently fused glass.My work can be found throughout Alberta, Ontario and Quebec.