RELEASED: April 3, 2003

DANVILLE, KY—The Centre College art program will present a series of public events featuring widely recognized glass artist Dante Marioni from Seattle.

Considered to be one of the most talented glass artists in the United States, Marioni will be featured in three events at the Jones Visual Arts Center on campus: a public slide lecture on April 10 at 4 p.m., and two public glass-blowing demonstrations in the Hot Glass Studio (April 10 at 8 p.m. and April 11 at 10 a.m.). Each of these events are free and open to the public.

Stephen Rolfe Powell, professor of art and renowned glass artist in his own right, comments, "Dante is one of the most inspirational artists working in glass today. This chance to see Dante create glass is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for students and glass enthusiasts in our area. Dante's work is a unique combination of virtuoso Venetian skills with a focused personal vision."

Following the traditional techniques of the Venetian glass masters, Marioni's work incorporates classical motifs, elegant proportions and delicate contours. While Marioni is indebted to this great glass-blowing tradition, he's by no means fearful of departing from its influence. His use of bold, saturated colors and robust, full-bodied forms expresses a modern sensibility.

Tina Oldknow, curator of the Corning Museum of Glass, writes "For Marioni, making objects is about the art of glass blowing rather than the blowing of glass art, and his elegant works are the radiant record of his ongoing relationship with the material."

Born in Mill Valley, Calif., in 1964, Marioni is a second-generation glass artist (his father is Paul Marioni). Dante Marioni began blowing glass when he was nine years old. He studied at two of the nation's top glass schools: the Pilchuck Glass School and the Penland School of Craft.

Marioni has received awards for his work from the American Craft Museum, N.Y.; the New York Experimental Glass Workshop; and the Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation. Prior to establishing his own studio in 1990, he worked with some of the world's top glass masters including Dale Chihuly, Benjamin Moore, Lino Tagliapietra (who has also visited Centre), Klaus Moje and Richard Marquis, with whom he has created collaborative pieces.

His work has been exhibited at major galleries and museums throughout the U.S. and the world including the American Craft Museum, the Corning Museum of Glass, a show of American Glass in Prague, and the 1990 American Glass exhibition in Tokyo. In 1993, Marioni was one of 72 artists whose work was selected for inclusion in the White House Crafts Collection.

For more on Marioni's work, go to http://www.DanteMarioni.com/.

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