artist

Jon Kuhn

Jon Kuhn is regarded as one of the leading glass artists in the world. With works featured in over 40 international museums including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Carnegie Museum, White House Permanent Collection, National Museum of American Art and hundreds of private residences and public spaces, millions have enjoyed his beautiful works. Being trained in ceramics, Mr. Kuhn first worked in clay and experimented with various silicate compounds. Eventually, he began working with cold glass in geometric shapes with the cube becoming the core component.

Today, the medium in which Mr. Kuhn works is unlike that used by most glass artists. Where the majority work with molten or blown glass, Mr. Kuhn works in cold glass that is cut, polished, and fused into a myriad of shapes from the inside out. The result is a sculpture that takes in surrounding light, then reflects and refracts it back into space much like a fine diamond. The detail and breadth of labor involved in creating one of these masterpieces is unlike any other glasswork in the world. No two are alike and once created, they are timeless as they appear to change color and radiance when viewed from different angles and lighting. Having started working by himself in a vacant auto shop in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, he now enlists the aid of 27 artisans producing these unique pieces. To come from a local, one-man studio, to having an international reputation is one of the great success stories in the world of fine art. His desire is to continue creating beautiful works, every one unique, bringing light and joy to those who experience them.

Jon Kuhn, of Jon Kuhn Studios and Al Priest, of Salem Stained Glass have organized an inspirational journey to Rome September 26 through October 3, 2010 for their presentation of the radiant crystal cross, Light of God, that Jon Kuhn has created for Pope Benedict XVI. The cross will be presented to the Pope by Kuhn and Priest.

“This Cross is magnificent”, said Archbishop Pietro Sambi, the Pope’s representative in the United States, during a preview presentation by Kuhn and Priest on April 28, 2010 in Washington,D.C. Archbishop Sambi then suggested that Kuhn and Priest present the cross to the Holy Father in person on September 29, 2010. He also said that Pope Benedict XVI likely would use the Kuhn Cross in his masses – even predicting that it would become the Pope’s favorite cross.

“We are honored and humbled by this opportunity”, Kuhn says. “This cross is all about light – it represents God’s Light in this world”.

EDUCATION:

MFA, Virginia Commonwealth Univerrsity, Richmond, Virginia

BFA, Washburn University, Topeka, Kansas

AWARDS:

2006 - Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts Degree, Washburn University, Topeka, KS

SOLO MUSEUM EXHIBITIONS (Including but not limited to):

2004 - Janice Charach Epstein Museum, West Bloomfield, Michigan

2003 - Mint Museum of Craft + Design, Charlotte, North Carolina

2000 - Janice Charach Epstein Museum, West Bloomfield, Michigan

1998 - Mulvane Art Museum, Topeka Kansas

- Museo Del Vidrio, Monterrey, Mexico

1996 - Asheville Art Museum, Asheville, North Carolina

1993 - Denoss Museum, Traverse City, Michigan

SELECTED COLLECTIONS:

Asheville Art Museum, Asheville, North Carolina

Carnegie Museum, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, Virginia

Columbus Museum, Columbus, Georgia

Corning Museum of Glass, New York, New York

Dayton Art Institute, Dayton, Ohio

de Young Museum, San Francisco, California

Denoss Museum, Traverse City, Michigan

Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, Michigan

Ebeltoft International Glasmuseum, Ebeltoft, Denmark

High Museum of Art, Atlanta, Georgia

Hsinchu Museum of Cultural Arts, Hsinchu, Taiwan

Hunter Museum, Chattanooga, Tennessee

Huntington Museum, Huntington, West Virginia

Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, New York

Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Mint Museum, Charlotte, North Carolina

Mulvane Art Museum, Topeka, Kansas

Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Lausanne, Switzerland

Museo del Vidrio, Monterrey, Mexico

Museum fur Kunst und Gewerbe, Hamburg, Germany

Museum of American Glass, Millville, New Jersey

Naples Museum of Art, Naples, Florida

National Museum of American Art, Washington, DC

Owensboro Museum of Art, Owensboro, Kentucky

Racine Art Museum, Racine, Wisconsin

Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Canada

Scottsdale Center for the Arts, Scottsdale, Arizona

Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, DC

Speed Art Museum, Louisville, Kentucky

Tampa Museum of Art, Tampa, Florida

Wheaton American Glass Museum, Millville, New Jersey

White House Permanent Collection, Washington, DC

Vero Beach Center for the Arts, Vero Beach, Florida

Detail Videos:

Jon Kuhn

Cubes

Blossom

Celestial Star

Spring Cherry

Paperweights

Paperweight (Rectangle)

Paperweight ( Yellow / Large)

Paperweight (Blue / Large)

Paperweight (Blue / Medium)

Paperweight (Orange / Medium)

Paperweight (Red / Medium)

Wall Sculpture

Petroglyphic Wall Hanging

Multigons

Wings of Heat

Obelisks

Rainbow

Red Pair (1)

Red Pair (2)