Description
End-of-Days is the first in a series of investigations into the circularity of glass beginning with sand. Silica sand is the second most exploited resource in the world and one of the primary ingredients in glass. Through multiple cycles of glaciation across New Jersey, coarse sands were formed in what would eventually become known today as the Pine Barrens. These “sugar sands” were prime material for the early glass industry and continue to be mined today.
“This installation ties together my interests in the history of land use and ownership in the first federal preserve; a recent discovery by geophysicists that the landscape is glass; and my father’s career as a union glazier installing windows in skyscrapers.” – Taylor
End-of-days, also known as friggers and whimseys, was an affectionate name for objects made by factory workers off the clock at the end of the work day. H.J. Powell in Glass-Making in England defines frigger as “a glass, made as an experiment, to test its effect, or the skill of the craftsman or boy.” Part of this installation involves the melting of an experimental, unstable glass formula made of silica sand and sodium carbonate, less its third major ingredient calcium carbonate. The result is a glass that begins to break down as soon as it’s fired. End-of-days also takes on a dual meaning by referencing the political and environmental challenges we currently face and the imaginative possibility of endings.
Participating Artist: Kristin Neville Taylor
Sound by Jamey Robinson
Narration by Philip Glahn
Camera and editing by Rich Hoffman
E. Avery Draper Gallery