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Artist likes to add intrigue to beauty of stained glass

A stained glass artist who likes to stimulate the eyes and the mind is heading to Scotland.

By WAVENEY ANN MOORE
Published September 11, 2005

ST. PETERSBURG - Garvin Sealy discovered his passion for creating stained glass quite accidentally.

Studying barely a semester under a master craftsman at Eckerd College, he found himself yearning to learn more about the centuries-old art and its intricate use of color and light to bring glass to life.

In a few days the dream will come true, as Sealy, 26, leaves for Scotland to hone his craft at the Edinburgh College of Art and study the windows of great cathedrals in Britain and the European continent.

He was inspired by his teacher, the late Fred Leuchs, to continue learning the craft, said Sealy, who plans to earn both master's and doctorate degrees in Scotland. The Eckerd College graduate wants to use his education to teach as well as create stained glass pieces.

"I want to give people the inspiration that I have received," he said.

On Tuesday Sealy will exhibit his work from 5:30 to 9 p.m. at the Studio@620 620 First Ave. S. He hopes to sell most of his pieces - original designs that explore abstract, secular and religious themes, often in thought-provoking ways - to help pay for his overseas studies.

Last week, surrounded by shards of colored glass, framed work and cluttered shelves in his Eckerd College studio, Sealy spoke animatedly about his work and goals.

Besides creating pieces over the past few years, he has worked as an instructor of stained glass techniques under the supervision of Eckerd College art professor Arthur Skinner. He uses different types of glass to give meaning to a piece, he said. Sometimes he layers it, as in his largest work, Salvation. In other cases, he uses pieces of mirrored glass for eyes, as in another work, Casting Stones.

"I use them to pull the viewer in. Eyes are mirrors," he said.

He also pointed to expensive antique sheets of glass, pieces of more easily obtained contemporary glass, and to the bottom of a beer bottle that he had worked into one of his stained glass creations. He also works with fossilized rock, shells and jewelry. Glass is costly to work with, he said. Still, he does not want his work to be too expensive.

"I do want it to be within the financial grasp of people. I want people to be able to walk out with something," he said of his Tuesday show.

Last week, he was putting the final touches on his work. His family, who had visited a few days earlier from Deerfield Beach, had helped enormously, he said. His father, Errol Sealy, a carpenter, built frames for the larger windows. His mother, Jimmy May, and younger brother and sister offered ideas and moral support. Sealy has a multicultural heritage. He was born in England and grew up in Trinidad and the United States. His father is from St. Vincent and his mother, from Venezuela. The family is Seventh-day Adventist, a fact that has influenced Sealy's work but not dominated it.

"I try to have both secular and religious ideas for my work. It's been a case where people who are not religious see completely different things in the work. I'm happy that my work can have different interpretations," he said.

"A lot of the work that I'm doing specifically for this show is abstract and has no religious connotation."

In fact, his work is nuanced, like the three paintings he calls The Three Phases of Sin. In the first, Judas is seen accepting money for agreeing to betray Jesus. In the second, he is seen kissing Jesus, and in the third, he is shown committing suicide. Those unaware of the religious meaning have been startled to see two men embracing, Sealy said. The panel sometimes is seen as a statement about gays, he added. Similarly, some view the panel of Judas hanging from a tree and believe it's about a lynching and that the three crosses in the background represent the Ku Klux Klan.

"For me, that's okay. I like that it can have multiple meanings," the artist said. "I think it is important for people to think. It is better when not only your aesthetics are aroused, but also your intellect. I don't want for it to be just another pretty picture."

Apart from the bigger pieces, Tuesday's show will include smaller desk-top art, clocks, mirrors, tiles and at least one coffee table.

[Last modified September 11, 2005, 01:12:04]