You are invited to a presentation by glass artist Christie A. Wood on some of the historically significant stained glass artwork in Denton, Texas. The presentation takes place September 4th, from 6:45 – 9:00 pm, at the Patterson-Appleton Arts Center, 400 E Hickory St, Denton, TX.
Christie will present artwork made from the 1930’s through 2019, including large-scale commissioned stained glass artworks and a new artwork that will be dedicated on September 15, 2019. Also included in the presentation are examples of the various types of stained glass commissions found in Denton: painted and leaded glass, copper foiled glass, fused glass, and dalle de verre (slab glass). All of these works are available for viewing by the general public. Attendees will receive a map handout of all the Denton stained glass “treasures” covered in the lecture.
Artist’s Statement:
Christie A. Wood is as interested in preserving the legacy and techniques of the thousand-year history of stained glass as she is in pushing the glass medium into new areas. She designs and constructs stained, painted, mosaicked, laminated, and decorative glass artwork based upon observation and imagination. Wood says, “Glass is a medium which lives and interacts with its environment. I find the play of light through the glass; whether that light is natural sunlight, artificial lighting, or modified through various glass techniques, as fascinating and changeable as Texas weather.”
Wood’s passion lies in creating new works of art which blend the desires of her client’s ideas with her own imaginings and technical expertise in a demanding craft. Clients often comment on her ability to capture their thoughts and emotions in the living glass, especially in nature-based compositions and portraits. Christie has 8 CD-ROMs of her original designs for sale, and has taught computer-assisted stained glass design at the Stained Glass Association of America (SGAA) conferences.
A graduate of North Texas State University (now the University of North Texas) in Denton, she studied stained glass in Eagleville, Pennsylvania with Barbara Jack of Inspirations, Inc. In 2010 she received Active Accredited status with the Stained Glass Association of America (SGAA), and in 2015 was awarded Professional status. She also holds a life time membership with the International Guild of Glass Artists (IGGA). In 2012 she was elected to the Stained Glass Association of America’s Board of Directors. In 2015 she rotated off the SGAA Board of Directors position, and is now a Trustee with the SGAA’s Stained Glass School (SGS).
Christie founded her stained glass company, Art Glass Ensembles, in 1995. What started as a wholesale-only business (i.e. creating stained glass suncatchers for resale in retail shops throughout the USA) has evolved. Art Glass Ensembles is now a full-service stained glass studio providing design, construction, installation, repair, and restoration services, and employing 5 part-time assistants. Christie’s artwork may be found throughout the country, as well as with collectors in England, Australia, and New Zealand. She has been featured on HGTV, and participated in a collectors-invitational only art show associated with the Oscars in Hollywood in 2012. Her main work is now commissioned by churches, public art, and private collectors in the North Texas and Austin areas.
Christie and her husband, George D’Ascenzo, are active in their community in Denton, Texas. They both graduated from North Texas State University (now UNT) with degrees in music; Christie holds a Bachelor of Music Education degree, and George holds a Bachelor of Fine Art in Cello Performance degree. Both still perform on their instruments in the North Texas area. Christie plays flute in the smooth jazz-based Jett Quartet, and baritone saxophone with First United Methodist Church of Denton’s Foo McBubba big band. She sings professionally with Noted Vocals, a four-part female a cappella ensemble, and sang for years with the Dallas Symphony Chorus, and with the Denton Bach Society. She is also involved in the Denton political scene; currently serving on the City of Denton’s Human Services Advisory Committee, and is chair of the Denton County Democratic Party’s House District 64 Club. She is active with the Denton Artist’s Enclave, and with the Visual Arts Society of Texas (VAST).
The presentation is sponsored by the Visual Arts Society of Texas (VAST), and is free for VAST members, and $5 for guests. For more information about VAST, see http://vastarts.org.
