BENJAMIN MOORE

1952-2021

"The fundamental concern and focus of my work is to achieve simplicity, balance, and clarity of form. Simple geometric shapes, such as the sphere and the cylinder, are often referenced in the execution of my work. I use color generally to attract attention to contour, but utilize very little surface decoration that would take away from the purity of the object's form. 

For me, the true challenge of creating an object is to give the piece a timeless presence or quality. To achieve this, I focus on the color, shapes, and proportions of the vessels by themselves and in groups, and the way light interacts with the work. Opacity, translucency, and transparency are varied to create different impressions for each series of work."

Benjamin Moore was a pioneer in American glassblowing. He was introduced to glass at the California College of Arts and Crafts while studying under Marvin Lipofsky. In 1974 he became Dale Chihuly’s first assistant and from 1974-1987 was Pilchuck Glass School’s creative and educational director. Moore went on to pursue his MFA at the Rhode Island School of Design. Unsatisfied with the American style of glass training where students follow the instructor’s example, Moore moved to Venice, Italy. He began his apprenticeship at the Venini with Checco Ongaro working as a glassworker and was soon asked to contribute his own designs. In 1980 he brought the Italian master Lino Tagliapietra to Pilchuck. Influenced by Venetian traditions in glass, he relies on simple, clean shapes in pure color and very little surface decoration. Benjamin Moore was a key player in establishing Seattle as a center for contemporary glass. He has been a designer for the Vernini Studio in Murano, Italy, on the faculty of the Massachusetts College of Art in Boston, Massachusetts, and served as both a faculty member and Trustee Board Member at the Pilchuck Glass School.

Moore’s love and appreciation for classical technique and design are apparent in his “Interior Fold,” “Exterior Fold,” and “Palla” series, all of which utilize elegantly traditional methods of decorative form. His work can be found worldwide in collections in Bavaria, Denmark, Austria, and Japan, as well as in the Venini Collection in Murano, Italy and in such American collections as the Corning Museum of Glass, Corning, New York, the American Craft Museum, New York, and the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, Georgia.

In 2013, Moore had a solo exhibition at the Museum of Glass in Tacoma, Transluscent, and in before that his work was featured in Berlin, Germany at the New Glass Art Exhibit, “Marioni and Moore”.  Elected as a Council Fellow to the American Craft Council because of his outstanding commitment to his art.

SELECTED COLLECTIONS

Center for the Arts, Vero Beach, FL Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, VA Corning Museum of Glass, Corning, NY Frauenau Museum, Frauenau, Bavaria  Glasmuseum, Ebeltoft, Denmark  High Museum of Art, Atlanta, GA Huntsville Museum of Art, Huntsville, AL J&L Lobmeyr Museum Collection, Vienna, Austria  Memorial Art Gallery of the University of Rochester, NY Mobile Museum of Art, Mobile, AL Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, AL Museum of Arts and Design, New York, NY Museum of Glass Benjamin Moore: Translucent, WA Museum of Glass: International Center for Contemporary Art, WA Muskegon Museum of Art, Muskegon, MI National Museum in Stockholm, Sweden  National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian Institution,  Niijima Contemporary Glass Art Museum, Niijima, Japan  The Contemporary Museum, Honolulu, Hawaii  Venini Collection, Murano-Venice, Italy  Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, VA Washington, D.C. Westinghouse/Shaw Walker Collection, Muskegon, MI