After completing seven years of undergraduate and graduate
study in Fine Art, Thomas Kite earned his final degree in Printmaking. However, he
had become more and more involved in applying Printmaking
process to working glass so the major works of his Graduate
Thesis Exhibition were sculptural- employing large
acid-etched glass
panels. This lead him to open a studio/gallery in New England during the
latter part of the 1970s.
Over the next 15 years, he immersed himself first in mastering
various
glass cold
working techniques and then in combining glass and other media such as stone
and metal into more
three dimensional expression.
During this time, he created hundreds of works, completed numerous private and commercial
commissions, and was represented for a few years by Hobe Sound
Galleries North, part of Midtown Payson Galleries in New York.
For many of these years, the Art Glass Movement in the United States had
yet to take hold. So he did his research and acquired skill alone, building
his own glass engraving equipment, and perfecting techniques through trial
and error.
"In the 70's and 80's, I was a fulltime artist. Among other
things, I built a special stone wheel glass lathe and setup a rig for
brilliant
cutting large glass panels.
At first, set a goal to
recreate the Victorian style cut glass
panels popular in the 1800's. Wanted to take it farther, but became more interested
in the rich possibilities of working
glass with other media so, abandoned
putting further effort into it.
In the late '80s, opportunities lead
me away from analog Art into UI then UX design. In 2004, found it was time to resume something
that was patiently waiting all along."
-Thomas Kite
In 2004, Thomas created Thos. Kite Art & Design to pick up where
he left off over 15 years before.
"It's taken a few years to get started again, mainly because setting
up a studio takes a great deal of time- finding the right
equipment, then making it work. Also, there was the mental
transition from my day job in computers back to Art as well as the
brush up on old skills like glass engraving.
It was time to do things I didn't do before. Before, hot glass work was done on a very limited
basis- now that has
changed.
Before, many of the experimental pieces were smaller. Now, the focus
is exploring
a larger scale and taking
bigger risks.
A rigger once told me that the best knot is one that is both very
strong and still unties easily after being under great stress. It
won't let go until you want it to. So hard times may shape us to be
like better knots? At least for me, past difficulty seems to have
informed the objects I make in mostly positive ways- some of which
only become evident over time and with letting go.
Now, the whole thing is about being
transparent to the Art making. And that's something I didn't fully understand
20 years ago."
-Thomas Kite
In 2016, Thomas created Pelta Games because a number of things all fell into place.
"It occurred to me a few years ago that Art has a side to it that I've never been comfortable with- something kind of narcissistic and removed. Turns out what I've been doing all these years has been connected by a playful disregard for the formalities of Art while taking great enjoyment in the unassuming side of it.
The side that captures your interest like a shiny penny or full Moon is at the core of art. Games have this and reach people where Art has failed. As a kid playing games I loved the tactile immersive experience of playing with objects that were truly magical, imbued with all my imagination could conjure up.
Play is the creative center that all of us start with. It nurtures us from our earliest moments and is critical in helping us grow an understanding of ourselves, our world, and our brief existence. This is where the primordial urge to Make takes form as expression. It is the power and essence of mind.
And from this all kinds of possibilities to cross lines, interact, and connect in new ways- crowd each other for attention. So that's where I'm headed now- where art is play and play is art."
-TK
Beside this site, below are some of the
best places to track future directions or
contact Thomas -
Ello
Youtube
Pelta Games
Pelta Games on-
Instagram
Youtube
Facebook
Recent study :
School of Glasswork Abate Zanetti, Murano, Italy-
Lampworking Solid Forms/Sculpture
Pratt Fine Arts Center, Seattle, Washington, USA-
Advanced Cold Working
Hotshop Glass Casting
Advanced Fusing
Previous Academic study :
SUNYA, Albany, New York, USA-
MA Printmaking
Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada-
BFA Printmaking
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