John Rose

The east and west windows, rising two stories, were completed for the 2000 opening of the library.

As can be gleaned from the the models, each is based on a repeating rectangular shape.

In 2005, I was asked to design an east-facing window for the 1st floor, an exciting site with the glass rising from ground level in a setting that is as much a city streetscape element as it is interior decoration.

Fused Glass, common now, was a rare thing in the early ‘80’s when I created glass at the ticket office for the The Hult Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Eugene.

Banding in many forms was used throughout the building; this project employs banding as well. The top has music images. The center band has stage images- a set, lights, and dancers. The lower evokes the creative spirit, with dancing forms taking shape, drifting pages, and characters from a play.

The University of Oregon’s addition to the science library is Price Science Commons, named for Allan S Price.

Allan’s wife Susan Price was asked to make a memorial piece. She enlisted my aid in the creation of “Rise”.

The central disc is fused glass; the top surface is Bullseye’s gold iridescent on black. To this disc are attached elements of carved maple which have been gold-leafed.

The background is pebble mosaic. The “rays” of the sun are raised and repoussèd brass, elements made in conjunction with metalsmith Randy Ortiz. A patina gives the brass a deep, warm tone.

Read the Oregon Quarterly article by Melody Leslie.

Together, metalsmith Greg Wilbur and I were commissioned to create artwork at the Newport City Hall council chambers.

Newport is a coastal town; using water as a theme is encouraged and expected. We saw our design as a metaphor for political deliberations- the hard and set notion of established law changed over time by the relentless action of the water.

Greg’s work is in raised metal- thousands of hammer blows shape what begins as flat metal and, along the way, renders a pleasingly textured surface. Some elements are polished, some are toned with patina.