Happy Labor Day!

Detail from artist Slate Grove's MFA exhibition "Everyday Heroes"

Glass artist and sculptor Slate Grove was named one of the 'Rising Stars" at Glass Weekend held at Wheaton Arts in Millville, NJ this past June. The Washington Glass School first met Slate when he was the Glass Studio Coordinator at Penland - around 2008. His glass tools fit the concept of Labor Day - intended to celebrate the economic and social contributions of workers.

From Slate's bio and artist statement: 
"Growing up in the blue-collar town of Fort Dodge, IA, I was surrounded by hard work. Gypsum mills, Limestone quarries, meat packing plants and trucking companies provided the majority of jobs in town. Like many Midwestern towns, there was no shortage of strong willed, physical folks with impeccable work ethic to fill those jobs. The town depended upon factory work and the workers depended on each other. Many in my family were displaced when Hormel closed its Fort Dodge plant in the 1980’s and, more recently, when Electrolux decided to move their Iowa operation to a facility in Mexico."

"My art work focuses on the fragility and the invisibility of those who do service jobs daily. I attempt to elevate the ghostly memories of the character of people who raised me and who, I feel, deserve our unending reverence."