My memories of childhood include countless hours spent wandering the fields and ravine behind our country home: navigating tall seas of grass; liberating the seeds of sticky milkweed pods; investigating the shorelines of meandering streams under puffy willow trees, surprising sun-warmed frogs; inspecting flora and listening to birds call one another.

Post-secondary education focused primarily on visual arts, fine art and graphic design. After graduation I found myself working on brochures and annual reports but rarely feeling artistically fulfilled. A friend suggested an evening stained glass course. Hungry for patterns I could not find, I designed my own, eventually publishing eight stained glass pattern books for sale throughout Canada, the U.S. and the U.K.

A number of years ago, I entered several large art panels into London’s Visual Fringe art show. These panels were the realization of desire to work large with total creative, experimental freedom. I was rewarded with Best of Show. Since then I have begun focusing on smaller, more space-friendly pieces, many of which incorporate delicious glass bowls and dishes, Swarovski crystals, cabochons, nuggets, and all manner of glass gewgaws I’ve collected over the years.

Working in stained glass provides both challenge and pleasure for me: an opportunity for design – to explore the relationships between line, space, pattern and proportion; to create designs that respect the inherent nature of glass to break in straight lines and not graceful curves; a palate of brilliant colours and sparkling textures; the visceral satisfaction of crafting with my hands – cutting, grinding, shaping, fitting, foiling and soldering each piece of glass, one at a time, to create a whole more lovely than the sum of its parts.

Sincerely,
Juanita

Contact

You can reach me by using the online e-mail form.