Hiroshi Yamano
Hiroshi Yamano Biography
Born in 1956 in Fukuoka, Japan, Hiroshi Yamano has been working with glass for over 25 years. He has studied at prestigious schools throughout the US and Japan, such as California College of Arts and Crafts, Tokyo Glass Art Institute, and Rochester Institute of Technology where he received his Masters in Fine Arts.
Yamano began working with glass in 1975 having seen an exhibition of Scandinavian glass in Kyoto. After traveling to Europe, he returned to Japan to complete his studies. He spent the next two years studying glass. At California College of Arts and Crafts, under Marvin Lipofsky, he learned the creative aspects of glass, and at the Tokyo Glass Art Institute he learned the technical aspects of glass.
Yamano's list of exhibitions is as impressive as it is international. Venues include the United States, Japan, Switzerland, Germany and Australia. He has received numerous awards, most notably in 1991, The Rakow Commission, an annual award presented to a leading glass artist, from The Corning Museum of Glass. The resulting piece was presented to the Corning Museum of Glass. His work appears in many collections, both public and private, including The Corning Museum of Glass in New York, the Wheaton Glass Museum in New Jersey and the Chrysler Museum in Virginia.
Hiroshi Yamano has been an integral part of a generation of artists who have transformed the glass vessel from a functional to a sculptural form. His vessels are glass canvases for his artistic expression, and in the creation of his work, he has transformed the craft of glass into an art. Hiroshi Yamano has worked throughout the world as an instructor at the prestigious Pilchuck Glass School, as a lecturer at The Glass Art Society conference in Mexico, The Aus Glass Conference in Australia and the Vanersborg Glass Festival in Sweden. In 1998 he was invited to be a guest at Waterford Crystal in Ireland.
At Rochester Institute of Technology in New York, Yamano began his series entitled "From East to West". There he developed the technique for which he is best known: rolling thickly blown hot glass over silver leaf to fuse it, scratching figures into the surface, and then plating the surface with copper. The idea for this technique came from studying Japanese metal work which is used for making traditional objects such as sword guards and copper containers. Yamano believes that the fish in his "From East to West" series are self-portraits with the mountains representing the United States and the water symbolizing Japan with its rivers, lakes and oceans.
Yamano always knew that it was glass he wanted to pursue. "My works," he says, "come from all my experiences. The memories I have from my experiences are my most important treasures. To keep finding my treasures, I have to keep swimming the world like a fish swimming in the waters." For the last 27 years, Yamano has been traveling the world and gathering inspiration. "I am a fish," he says, "who is always looking for something. I am a fish who cannot stop swimming until my body stops moving. Maybe I will swim forever, like the universe."
Fish are a recurrent motif in Yamano's glass vessels. He adheres to a strict thematic approach expressing his dynamism through his fluid forms. In some vessels he delineates form and decoration by casing his panels with patterns of fish in colorless glass. In others, he merges the two into opulent, elegant forms. Yamano's work is also as much about interiors as it is about exteriors, weaving together rich brocades of gold, silver and copper foils while creating a seductive interplay of transparency and translucency.
In his newest work, Yamano creates large circular windows that open into his gilt interiors delicately engraved with his fish motif. From the outside, the gentle folds of the overlapping leaves of gold, silver and copper create the appearance of precious papier mache. The most recent blown vessels include as many elegant, timeless forms as do his signature spheres with fish perched upon them, forms that reflect both tradition and innovation.
Hiroshi Yamano Description
Japan is a country that has four distinct seasons, and the seasons have traditionally been a popular subject in Japanese art. An appreciation of the changing seasons also permeates popular culture, as people take the time to enjoy scenes of natural beauty at different times of the year, to eat seasonal foods and to decorate their homes with objects that reflect the changing seasons.
I, too, have a strong awareness of the natural world that surrounds me. As I grow older, I find myself wanting to spend more time in nature for the peace of mind that it brings to me. I value the simplicity and quiet that I encounter there, surrounded by the beauty of the Japanese landscape.
My art is a reflection of that beauty; nature is the source of my creativity. In my work I want to interpret the feelings and sensations of having a close connection to nature, and through it share the beauty of the changing seasons in Japan with the viewer.
In Nagare (a Japanese word meaning current), pieces are designed to be slightly askew, creating a sense of movement, or flow, in the work. They are an extension of his popular From East to West series, through which he explores the influence of both Eastern and Western cultures in his life.
Hiroshi Yamano Resumé
EDUCATION
1981 B.A. Chuo University, Tokyo, Japan
1982 California College of Arts and Crafts, Oakland, CA, USA
1984 Tokyo Glass Art Institute, Tokyo, Japan
1989 M.F.A. Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, NY, USA
INSTRUCTOR
1986 Leon Applebaum Glass Studio, Plattsburg, NY, USA
1988 Penland School of Crafts, Penland, NC, USA
1990 Tokyo Glass Art Institute, Tokyo, Japan.
1991 Pilchuck Glass School, Stanwood, WA, USA
1994 Pilchuck Glass School, Stanwood, WA, USA
2000 Pilchuck Glass School, Stanwood, WA, USA
2002 Pilchuck Glass School, Stanwood, WA, USA
2003 Chair of Glass Department, Osaka University of Arts, Osaka, Japan
2004 Grand Crystal Museum, Taipei, Taiwan
2005 Pilchuck Glass School, Stanwood, WA, USA
2006 - Present Professor of Glass Department, Osaka University of Arts, Osaka, Japan
STUDIO FOUNDER & DIRECTOR
1991 Established Ezra Glass Studio, Ohtsuki, Japan
1998 Established Ezra Glass Studio at Kanaz Forest of Creation, Kanazu, Japan
Glass Art Document, Kanazu, Japan
1999 Kanaz Forest of Creation Glass Workshop, Spring & Summer, Kanazu, Japan
2000 Established Glass School at Ezra Glass Studio, Kanazu, Japan
Kanaz Forest of Creation Glass Workshop, Spring, Kanazu, Japan
Annual - Kanaz Forest of Creation Glass Workshop, Spring & Summer, Kanazu, Japan
LECTURES & RESIDENCIES
1989 Creative Glass Center of America, Millville, NJ, USA
1991 Otaru Glass Art Festival, Otaru, Japan.
Corning Museum of Glass, Corning, NY, USA
1992 Glass Art Society Conference, Mexico
1993 Aus Glass Conference, Australia
1994 Vanersborg Glass Festival, Vanersborg, Sweden
1998 Waterford Crystal Company, Waterford, Ireland
1999 Glass & Science Symposium, Portugal
2002 Liquid Light Glass, Santa Fe, NM, USA
Osaka Craft Park, Osaka, Japan
Jam Factory, Adelaide, Australia
Harbour Front Centre, Toronto, ONT, Canada
Public Glassmaking and Metalworking Facility, Shizuoka, Japan
MC Glass Lab, Tokyo, Japan
2003 Glass Works Symposium, Toyama, Japan
Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
2004 San Jose State University, San Jose, CA, USA.
2005 Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, NY, USA
2006 Museum of Glass, Tacoma, WA, USA
2008 Glass Art Society Conference, Portland OR, USA
2009 College of Creative Studies, Detroit, MI, USA
2011 Bay Area Glass Institute, Santa Cruz, CA
2013 Wheaton Arts Visiting Artist, Glass Weekend, Millville, NJ, USA
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
1989 Dowson Gallery, Rochester, NY, USA
Grohe Glass Gallery, Boston, MA, USA
1990 Habatat Gallery, Boca Raton, FL, USA
1991 Heller Gallery, New York, NY, USA
Running Ridge Gallery, Santa Fe, NM, USA
William Traver Gallery, Seattle, WA, USA
1992 Glass Gallery & Studio Asa, Tokyo, Japan
1993 Studio Com-Tachikichi, Kyoto, Japan
Glass Gallery Mannu-Kurokabe, Nagahama, Japan
Buro-M, Osaka, Japan
Misawa Home Art Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
Syoutaro Glass Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
Espacio Glass Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
1994 Glass Gallery Mannu-Kurokabe, Nagahama, Japan
Mumon-An Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
1995 Buro-M, Osaka, Japan
Hanayo Gallery, Wakayama, Japan
Gallery Wachi, Tokyo, Japan
Gallery Ten, Daimaru Department Store, Tokyo, Japan
Gallery Kokon, Niigata, Japan
William Traver Gallery, Seattle, WA, USA
Rachel Collection, Aspen, CO, USA
1996 Gallery Bidro-Ya, Nagoya, Japan
Hanayo Gallery, Wakayama, Japan
Margo Jacobsen Gallery, Portland, OR, USA
Maurine Littleton Gallery, Washington DC, USA
Edgewood Orchard Gallery, Fishcreek, WI, USA
Grand Central Gallery, Tampa, FL, USA
1997 Rachel Collection, Aspen, CO, USA
William Traver Gallery, Seattle, WA, USA
Heller Gallery, New York, NY, USA
Gallery Neos, Tokyo, Japan
1998 Gallery Spotlight, Tokyo, Japan
Margo Jacobsen Gallery, Portland, OR, USA
Gallery Shibayama, Tokyo, Japan
Gallery Enomoto, Osaka, Japan
1999 Marx Saunders Gallery, Chicago, IL, USA
Gallery Utsuwa-Kan, Kyoto, Japan
William Traver Gallery, Seattle, WA, USA
Akarenga-Kan, Kitakyushu, Japan
2000 Heller Gallery, New York, NY, USA
Rachel Collection, Aspen, CO, USA
Gallery Enomoto, Osaka, Japan
Gallery Kitsukei, Fukui, Japan
Akarenga-Kan, Kitakyushu, Japan
Riley Hawk Gallery, Cleveland, OH, USA
2001 Friesen Fine Art, Sun Valley, ID, USA
Galleria Silecchia, Sarasota, FL, USA
Gallery Utuwa-Kan, Kyoto, Japan
Running Ridge Gallery, Santa Fe, NM, USA
William Traver Gallery, Seattle, WA, USA
Gallery Ten, Daimaru Department Store, Osaka, Japan
Shibuya Tokyu Department Store, Tokyo, Japan
2002 Public Glassmaking and Metalworking Facility, Shizuoka, Japan
Gallery Enomoto, Osaka, Japan
Gallery Kikkei, Fukui, Japan
Royal Art Gallery, Daimaru Department Store, Osaka, Japan
Heller Gallery, New York, NY, USA
Holsten Gallery, Stockbridge, MA, USA
William Traver Gallery, Seattle, WA, USA
Marx Saunders Gallery, Chicago, IL, USA
Miranda Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA, USA
2003 Ainsley Gallery, Toronto, ONT, Canada
Sala Crystal Gallery, Nara, Japan
Museum of Arts and Crafts, Itami, Japan
Sala Crystal Gallery, Nara, Japan
Running Ridge Gallery, Santa Fe, NM, USA
Riley Hawk Gallery, Columbus, OH, USA
2004 Holsten Gallery, Stockbridge, MA, USA
William Traver Gallery, Seattle, WA, USA
Shiga Kogen Roman Museum, Nagano, Japan
Gallery Ten, Daimaru Department Store, Osaka, Japan
Grand Crystal Museum, Taipei, Taiwan
2005 Heller Gallery, New York, NY, USA
Sala Crystal Gallery, Nara, Japan
Tobin-Hewett Gallery, Louisville, KY, USA
William Traver Gallery, Seattle, WA, USA
Lewallen Gallery, New Mexico, NM, USA
Shibuya Tokyu Department Store, Tokyo, Japan
Marx Saunders Gallery, Chicago, IL, USA
2006 Habatat Galleries, Royal Oak, MI, USA
Holsten Galleries, Stockbridge, MA, USA
William Traver Gallery, Tacoma, WA, USA
Fukui Kougeisha, Fukui, Japan
Kuivato Glass Gallery, Sedona, AZ, USA
Gallery Fush, Chiba, Japan
2007 Davis and Cline Gallery, Ashland, OR, USA
Sandra Ainsley Gallery, Toronto, Canada
Lads Gallery, Osaka, Japan
2008 Wiliam Traver Gallery, Seattle, WA, USA
Lewallen Contemporary, Santa Fe, NM, USA
2009 Habatat Galleries, MI, USA
Marta Hewett Gallery, Cincinnati, OH, USA
Vidoroya, Nagoya, Japan
2010 LewAllen Contemporary, Santa Fe, NM, USA
Davis and Cline Gallery, Ashland, OR, USA
2011 William Traver Gallery, Seattle, WA, USA
Ken Saunders Gallery, Chicago, IL, USA
2012 Thomas Riley Galleries, Cleveland, OH, USA
2013 Robert Lombard Fine Art, Orlando, FL, USA
2014 Stewart Fine Art, Boca Raton, FL, USA
LewAllen Contemporary, Scottsdale, AZ, and Santa Fe, NM, USA
Traver Gallery, Seattle, WA, USA
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
1986 Japan Modern Craft Exhibition, Tokyo Art Museum, Tokyo, Japan
New Glass from Japan and America,Nachste Ausstellung Museum, Switzerland
New Glass from Japan, Gallery Gottscalk Bets, Frankfurt, Germany
International Exhibition of Glass Crafts, Kanazawa, Japan
Kyoto Craft International, Kyoto, Japan
1987 100 American Craftsmen, Kenan Center, Buffalo, NY, USA
Japan Crafts Exhibition, Tokyo, Japan
1990 Stockbridge Invitational, Holsten Gallery, Stockbridge, MA, USA
Glass Art, Hakone Open Air Museum, Hakone, Japan
Rivalto Glass Sculpture Exhibition, Isetan Museum,Tokyo, Japan
Ual Art Exhibition, Tokyo Art Museum, Tokyo, Japan
X’mas Glass Show, Gallery Nakama, Tokyo, Japan
International Glass Invitational, Habatat Gallery, Boca Raton, FL, USA
1991 Glass Art, Glass Gallery & Studio Asa, Tokyo, Japan
New Generation. Gallery Nakama, Tokyo, Japan
Funzione, Gallery ArteFact, Tokyo, Japan
Glass Art from Japan, Grohe Glass Gallery, Boston, MA, USA
International Glass Invitational, Habatat Gallery, Boca Raton, FL, USA
1992 Glass Art, Contemporary Art Niki, Tokyo, Japan
Funzione vol. 2, Gallery ArteFact, Tokyo, Japan
Evolving, Yokohama City Gallery, Yokohama, Japan
Design Vision, Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth, Australia
1993 International Glass Invitational, Habatat Gallery, Boca Raton, FL, USA
Studio Glass Artists Exhibition, Maruzen Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
Funzione vol. 3, Gallery ArteFact, Tokyo, Japan
1994 Japan Modern Glass Art Invitational, Tokyo, Japan
Funzione vol. 4, Gallery ArteFact, Tokyo, Japan
Tea Bowl Exhibition, Kakiden Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
1995 Funzione vol. 5, Gallery ArteFact, Tokyo, Japan
Glass for September, Glass Gallery Karanis, Tokyo, Japan
Glass for December, Glass Gallery Karanis, Tokyo, Japan
Tea Bowl Exhibition, Kakiden Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
1996 Beer Van Gogh, Tokyo, Japan
Tea Bowl Exhibition, Kakiden Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
1997 International Glass Invitational, Habatat Gallery, Boca Raton, FL, USA
Ripple Effect in Glass, Gallery of American Craft, Millville, NJ, USA
Funzione vol. 6, Gallery ArteFact, Tokyo, Japan
1998 Five Elements, Gallery Chika, Tokyo, Japan
Sake and Sake Cup Exhibition, Miyako Hotel, Kyoto, Japan
Summer Glass, Art Gallery Biyu-Bou, Japan
Glass Art 98, Ginza Wako Department Store, Tokyo, Japan
Directions, Gallery Misawa, Japan
Grand Central Gallery, Tampa, FL, USA
Glass Art, Niigata Museum, Niigata, Japan
1999 Rachel Collection, Aspen, CO, USA
Glass Art, London Glassblowing Workshop, London, UK
Glass Art, Gallery Candide, Tokyo, Japan
Glass in Japan, Odakyu Museum, Tokyo, Japan
Funzione vol. 7, Gallery ArteFact, Tokyo, Japan
Corning Museum Rakow Awards Show, Margo Jacobsen Gallery, Portland, OR, USA
Glass Art Exhibition, Art Core Museum, Kanazu, Japan
2000 Exhibition of Kanaz Forest of Creation Artists, Art Core Museum, Kanazu, Japan
Japan Contemporary Glass, Onoda Museum, Onoda, Japan
William Traver Gallery, Seattle, WA, USA
Stream of Light, Grand Crystal Museum, Taipei, Taiwan
Creativity and Collaboration: Pilchuck Glass School's 30 Years, Seattle Center, USA
Light Impressions, Coos Art Museum, Coos Bay, OR, USA
Creatures Great and Small, Chappell Gallery, Boston, MA USA
2001 Gallery Enomoto, Osaka, Japan
Tea Bowl Shoe, Kyohei Fujita Museum, Miyagi, Japan
Funzione, Gallery Arte Fact, Tokyo, Japan
Perspectives in Glass, Firehouse Gallery, Vancouver WA, USA
15th Anniversary Exhibition, Friesen Gallery, Ketchum, ID, USA
China International Glass Exhibition, Millennium Museum, Beijing, China
Shanghai Fine Arts Museum, Shanghai, China
29th Annual International Glass Invitational, Habatat Galleries, Pontiac, MI, USA
SOFA , Marx Saunders Gallery, New York, USA
Glass Exhibition, Galleria Silecchia, Sarasota, FL, USA
Fabulous Fish, Dane Gallery, Nantucket, MA, USA
2002 Suntry Museum. Tokyo. Japan.
30th International Glass Invitational, Habatat Galleries, Royal Oak, MI, USA
SOFA/Marx Saunders Gallery, Chicago, IL,USA
2003 Glass Works 2003, Toyama Shimin Plaza, Toyama, Japan
31st International Glass Invitational, Habatat Galleries, Royal Oak, MI, USA
SOFA/Marx Saunders Gallery, Chicago, IL, USA
20/20 Vision, Museum of American Glass, Millville, NJ, USA
Cheongju International Craft Biennale 2003, Cheongju, Korea
2004 Glass Art, Lad’s Gallery, Osaka, Japan
Osaka Kogei Exhibition, Osaka, Japan
32nd International Glass Invitational, Habatat Gallery, Royal Oak, MI, USA
SOFA/Thomas Riley Gallery, Chicago, IL, USA
Glass Masters 2004, Shibuya Tokyu Department Store, Tokyo, Japan
Glass Art 2004, Ginza Waco Department Store, Tokyo, Japan
Art Palm Beach, Marx Saunders Gallery, Palm Beach, FL, USA
Marxhausen Gallery of Art, Concordia University, Seward, NE, USA
First Annual World Glass, William Traver Gallery, Tacoma, WA, USA
Glass Masters 2005, Shibuya Tokyu Department Store, Tokyo, Japan
2005 Arts & Ecology, Osaka University of Arts, Osaka, Japan
Osaka Kogei Exhibition, Osaka, Japan
Fukui Kougeisha, Fukui, Japan
Glass Art Energy, Art Core Museum, Kanazu, Japan
Glass Art 2005, Shibuya Tokyu Department Store, Tokyo, Japan
G-wings Gallery, Kanazawa, Japan
Second Annual World Glass, William Traver Gallery, Tacoma, WA, USA
SOFA/Marx Saunders Gallery, Chicago, IL, USA
33rd International Glass Invitational, Habatat Galleries, Royal Oak, MI, USA
Laura Russo Gallery, International Glass Exhibition, Portland, OR, USA
2006 Osaka Kogei Exhibition, Osaka, Japan
SOFA/Thomas Riley Galleries, Chicago, IL, USA
34th International Glass Invitational, Habatat Galleries, Royal Oak, MI, USA
2007 CCA: A Legacy in Studio Glass, San Francisco Muesum of Craft and Design,
San Francisco, CA, USA
SOFA/ Thomas Riley Galleries, Chicago, IL, USA
35th International Glass Invitational, Habatat Galleries, Royal Oak, MI, USA
Memorial Art Glass Exhibition, Tokyo, Japan
Masterworks Exhibition, Habatat Galleries 35th Annual International Awards
Exhibition, Royal Oak, MI, USA
2008 Osaka Kogei Exhibition, Osaka, Japan
Table Wear Festival 2008, Tokyo, Japan
Art Palm Beach/ Thomas Riley Galleries, Palm Beach, FL, USA
Hiragane Yoichi & Hiroshi Yamano Exhibition, Lads Gallery, Osaka
