"Selene" by Joanna Manousis – Museum Acquisition

Ringling Museum in Sarasota, FL
October 22, 2022
"Selene" by Joanna Manousis – Museum Acquisition
We are thrilled to announce the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art in Sarasota, Florida has acquired Joanna Manousis’ stunning work Selene for their permanent collection!  Momentum Gallery is proud of Joanna and this most recent museum placement. 

The artist writes about the work – "Selene is comprised of 42 glass segments that take on the formation of an oculus window, commonly found in churches of the gothic architectural style. Rather than infiltrating light into a sacred space, Selene refracts light to its viewer. The glass segments act as apertures for the residual details of wheat and seed-like formations that lie within. Here, both the wheel and the wheat pay homage to the ever-flowing cycle of life and death. Opal glass, reminiscent of its water-stone has been used to embody Selene, the Greek goddess of the moon whose gravitational pull connects us to the tides."

 

Selene represents the culmination of several months of studio-practice research. Artist Joanna Manousis conducted a series of 20 tests using an opaline glass that changes its color saturation based on the length of time it is held at a developing temperature in the kiln. The castings were held from 15 minutes to 200 hours at this advancing stage, creating a varied spectrum of hues. The segments that comprise Selene were cast in 5 separate kiln firings, each differing in its developing hold duration in order to present distinct opacity shifts in the finished sculpture. Selene is definitely a one-of-a-kind piece, made from glass that is no longer available.

 

Joanna Manousis is currently in Sunderland, England pursuing a PhD in glass.  

About the author

Jordan Ahlers

Add a comment