On the occasion of the 7th edition of The Venice Glass Week, Beatrice Burati Anderson is pleased to present, in the double venue of its Venetian gallery, FANGO FUOCO FIORI (MUD FIRE FLOWERS), a solo exhibition by American artist Judi Harvest.

In the Calle de la Madonna venue are displayed three large-scale oil paintings, as well as five recent encaustic paintings.

In the Corte Petriana space, we exhibit a number of videos on the artist’s work, and a series of glass works, as well as the neon installation that gives the exhibition its title.

A multifaceted artist with extraordinary energy, originally a classically trained abstract painter, for the past thirty-five years Harvest has lived and worked between New York and Venice, her city of choice, where her cherished themes related to the fragility of the ecosystem and beauty have found one of their best expressions in glass art.

But to get a broader idea of the importance of her work, one must consider the motivations behind it.

Since 1988 her glass works have taken shape in the furnace of Murano master Giorgio Giuman in Sacca Serenella.

Here Harvest over time comes into contact with the wonder and precariousness of the balance of the lagoon environment and the problems associated with the survival of glassmaking.

A beekeeper and always particularly sensitive to environmental issues, the artist sees a similarity in the need for and ways of protecting both.

Harvest engages in a dialogue with the city through the creation of spectacular large-scale, sometimes modular glass works, such as the large Buddha or the musical Full Moon that for years has been on display at the Calle Vallaresso pier, in front of Harry’s Bar.

The coincidence between mastery of work and half a century of commitment to environmental protection culminated in a true miracle when in 2013 the artist felt the need to transform a forgotten field behind Giorgio Giuman’s glass factory into Eden.

Judi Harvest is a petite woman, but one with incredible strength, she is an example, because, she truly had the courage to pursue, for more than 12 years, a wonderful idea by starting it all by herself (literally carrying sack after sack of earth on her shoulders!) until she involved an entire community.

Master glassmakers, beekeepers, gardeners and local people, from Murano, Venice and the hinterland, have been involved by her on crucial issues of pollination, through the power of art. The theme is finally relevant to all, many are now active in this regard, and more bees gardens are going to be created in Venice and its islands.

The creation of the magical Bees Garden, where an exquisite limited edition honey is produced, is an incarnation, on various levels, of a true ethical masterpiece, the care of which is carried on by the artist in parallel with her prolific activity as a painter and glass sculptor.

Every year in September, the festive Picnic of the Honey Garden is celebrated in the garden of Giorgio Giuman’s furnace in Murano.

We are proud to recognize the importance of Judi Harvest’s contribution to art, the environment and the land, dedicating her this exhibition.

PRESS RELEASE MUD, FIRE, FLOWERS