The Lore Degenstein Gallery of Susquehanna University welcomes an exhibition of glass sculpture by Christopher Ries as the opening exhibition of our 1999-2000 year. Ries works on his sculpture at Schott Glass Technologies in Duryea, Pennsylvania, where he has been an artist in residence since 1986. Schott is a manufacturer of precision optical glass, providing material for such applications as large lenses for telescopes and other industrial uses of glass. It made a distinctive collaboration for the sculptor to combine his working process with a company that could provide him with the high-quality material needed to fit his aesthetic and technical purposes. Ries's sculpture employs the technique of coldwork. As opposed to heating and blowing glass sculpture, Ries grinds, slices, cuts, carves, polishes, and otherwise treats the surface of glass material while it is cold to refine its reflective and refractive properties. His finished product incorporates forms which enhance his goals by introducting ambient light into the final effect. Some of his pieces are monumental forms; Sunflower, 1992, for example, utilizes simple facets carved into 770 pounds of glass along with engraved images of petals and plant forms to give the impression of a large flower floating in a crystal pool. Ries's collabrative project with Schott Glass has led to opportunities for both the corporation and the sculptor to advantage. Ries states, I began to promote this material to other artists which led to a secondary market for Schott, whose primary market is ophthalmic glass, laser glass, radiation shielding, optic crystal, and such. They had a fair quantity of glass that did not meet the company's very rigid specifications. That glass used to be turned into landfill as there was no scientific use for second-quality material. But Schott's second-quality glass is at least three times as good as the very best being made in art glass studios. To an artist, the glass was a dream material.1 For Schott's benefit, Ries offers demonstations of the use of hand grinding and polishing techniques, particularly that of diamond technology, and he has bult a polishing lathe which facilitates the polishing of large round and curved forms by hand. Ries feels that one of the important benefits of the collaboration is that the company is able to display his work at trade shows. The attractive nature of the artwork, Ries says, "always draws a crowd."2 After receiving his BFA degree at Ohio State University in 1975, Ries found his focus on glass to be continued at the University of Wisconsin where his graduate studies allowed him to maintain a private glassblowing studio in Mineral Point, Wisconsin. He was later to abandon the hotwork process and begin a viable affiliation with Schott to develop new techniques which are evident today in his oeuvre. Objects in the exhibition include Sunflower, mentioned previously, and several smaller works that can be experienced for their intricate approach to carving utilizing the surfaces of the scultpure to provide an illusion of interior forms. Many of these sculptures can be seen at the conclusion of the exhibition at Ries's studion and gallery near Scranton. The Lore Degenstein Gallery appreciates the efforts of the artist and David Schimmel of Schott Glass Technologies for bringing the exhibition to Susquehanna. We are also deeply indebted to the Degenstein Center Theater and Lore Degenstein Gallery Endowment for making our exhibition program possible.   Valerie Livingston   1 Interview with Christopher Ries in Shawn Waggoner "The Fourth Dimension: the Art Glass of Christopher Ries," Glass Art (November/December 1996): 4-8 2 Ibid.   Sunflower. Christopher Ries. Optical crystal glass, pigment, and gilt. 1992. 12 x 38.5" Collection of the artist and Schott Glass Technologies.