Jen Fuller Studio: Transforming Everyday Objects into Experiences
Jen Fuller Studio is more than just an art studio; it's an experience that invites viewers to double take and question the medium. Located in Portland, Oregon, this unique studio is a collaboration between Jen Fuller and her friends where "cool" comes alive. Jen, a passionate artist with specialties in glass and steel, finds inspiration in everyday objects, often sourced from landfills.
Jen's approach to art-making is centered around the concept of fragility and vulnerability. Glass, as an alchemical material, becomes the perfect medium for conveying how fragile and transparent we all are. Her work explores post-industrialism, where she creates a new kind of nature out of industrial materials, challenging our perception of what is natural and what is not.
The studio's latest project was spent six months in the Portland landfill, where Jen rummaged through piles of discarded objects, searching for treasures. She found an old suitcase, 1800s photographs, glass, and old fence frames – pieces that became the foundation for her illuminated reanimated objects. By photografting individual pieces of a photograph multiple times onto glass panels, she created ephemeral art that seemed to come alive when illuminated.
Jen's fascination with post-industrialism is evident in her creative process. She takes discarded materials and transforms them into something new, pushing the boundaries of what is possible. In her words, "I kind of like to not be too precious about breakage or how it gets there as long as it gets to that space where you double take what the medium is." This approach allows her to create art that challenges our perceptions and sparks a conversation.
Metal becomes an essential component in supporting Jen's glass sculptures. Initially, she used metal as an armature to provide structure, but eventually, she transitioned to using steel as a component of the sculpture itself. This shift allowed her to break free from the constraints of perfection and explore new possibilities.
Jen's dream gig would be to create 500 or a thousand glass planes video mapped in a prominent airport, such as Portland International Airport or Chicago O'Hare International Airport. The digital video, which Jen is casting herself, picks up beautifully on the glass surfaces, creating an immersive experience that invites viewers to engage with her art.
The studio's ultimate goal is not only to create visually stunning pieces but also to build content for interactive design experiences that evoke emotions and spark meaningful connections. By exploring the interplay between digital video and glass surfaces, Jen aims to transport people into the world of her art before they intellectually understand its significance. In her words, "I'm going after people's limbic systems I want them to be feeling the art before they know why they're logically identifying with the art."
As we explore the realm of Jen Fuller Studio, it becomes clear that this artist is not only pushing boundaries but also redefining what we consider "art." By embracing fragility and vulnerability, she encourages us to reconsider our relationship with industrial materials and the world around us. As we delve deeper into her creative process, we find ourselves drawn into a world of illuminated reanimated objects, metal-supported glass sculptures, and digital video mapped landscapes – all testaments to Jen Fuller Studio's unwavering dedication to innovation and artistic expression.
"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: engot it made brought to you by digital trans and case of base with Ezra and his friends where cool is made what is Jen Fuller Studio I transform everyday objects into experiences my medium Specialties in glass and steel and things I find in the landfill I kind of like to not be too precious about breakage or how it gets there as long as it gets to that space where you double take what the medium is I would never think this was glass I would think wax what I'm interested in exploring is a sort of fragility and vulnerability and glasses are really epic alchemical material to convey how fragile and transparent we all are and the leaves and the feathers are kind of this exploration for me of post-industrialism like what's going to happen when everything is not natural anymore and we have to make nature out of our industrial materials I did a project in the Portland landfill and I was there for 6 months taking objects that I found were you like Scrooge mcdan into the pile the pile yeah so I got there and I didn't know where to even start and I found a suitcase my very first day of 1800's photographs and I found a bunch of glass and a bunch of old fence frames and stuff and I made these and they're these like illuminated reanimated objects I took pieces like individual pieces of a photograph and photografted over and over and over again until it became this really ephemeral thing and started printing it on the glass panels it's very cool when you start to illuminate these things they very much come alive everything I do in glass is going to have to have some sort of an Armature to support it right and so I started using metal to support the you know as a supportive Armature and then I got tired of trying to make it perfect and I started using the steel as a component of the sculpture rather than just this precious Armature my dream gig would be 500 or a thousand glass planes video mapped in the Portland airport or the Chicago airport or something like that which is where I'm casting digital video and it picks up really beautifully and it's turning out really cool I'm just really interested in the play between the digital video and the glass surfaces and how to build content for these interactive design experiences that mean something I'm really going after people's limic systems I want them to be feeling the art before they know why they're logically identifying with the art hegot it made brought to you by digital trans and case of base with Ezra and his friends where cool is made what is Jen Fuller Studio I transform everyday objects into experiences my medium Specialties in glass and steel and things I find in the landfill I kind of like to not be too precious about breakage or how it gets there as long as it gets to that space where you double take what the medium is I would never think this was glass I would think wax what I'm interested in exploring is a sort of fragility and vulnerability and glasses are really epic alchemical material to convey how fragile and transparent we all are and the leaves and the feathers are kind of this exploration for me of post-industrialism like what's going to happen when everything is not natural anymore and we have to make nature out of our industrial materials I did a project in the Portland landfill and I was there for 6 months taking objects that I found were you like Scrooge mcdan into the pile the pile yeah so I got there and I didn't know where to even start and I found a suitcase my very first day of 1800's photographs and I found a bunch of glass and a bunch of old fence frames and stuff and I made these and they're these like illuminated reanimated objects I took pieces like individual pieces of a photograph and photografted over and over and over again until it became this really ephemeral thing and started printing it on the glass panels it's very cool when you start to illuminate these things they very much come alive everything I do in glass is going to have to have some sort of an Armature to support it right and so I started using metal to support the you know as a supportive Armature and then I got tired of trying to make it perfect and I started using the steel as a component of the sculpture rather than just this precious Armature my dream gig would be 500 or a thousand glass planes video mapped in the Portland airport or the Chicago airport or something like that which is where I'm casting digital video and it picks up really beautifully and it's turning out really cool I'm just really interested in the play between the digital video and the glass surfaces and how to build content for these interactive design experiences that mean something I'm really going after people's limic systems I want them to be feeling the art before they know why they're logically identifying with the art he\n"