Lauryl Sidwell

Bio

Lauryl Sidwell is a stained glass artist from Kansas City, Missouri. She went without any particular interest in creating her own visual art until February of 2020, when she was especially taken with some examples of modern stained glass displayed online. Her interest grew quickly, and so she found herself working at the craft just as the Covid-19 pandemic took root; her place of employment remained open through lockdowns, and was in fact supported generously by the community around it. These increased sales allowed her to invest in the necessary tools to begin her work on the craft.

After an initial self-taught period, she traveled to attend an artists' workshop in the Blue Ridge Mountains. In the glass studio at Penland School of Craft, she was able to experiment with many new techniques to elevate her stained glass, including kiln-fire painting, sandblasting, and silk screening. Here, Lauryl began on her own path to understanding what she could bring to the medium. She is still forging this path, and continues to constantly challenge herself with the application of new techniques, styles, and unique formal conceptions.

Each of these submitted pieces were created as an experiment in technique. The anime scene, "Oh, you're approaching me?" was created in the aforementioned Penland School of Craft workshop. Her largest and most ambitious piece, it integrates sandblasting, kiln-fired paints, and media layering to build the images and dimensions of the scene. "The Crossing" saw her experimenting with a ring saw to execute intricate cuts on rare and high quality glass. In future works, Lauryl plans to throw caution to the wind and utilize these kinds of hard to obtain materials in even her new experiments in technique.

Artist Statement

Though I work in a traditional medium, I find that the old conventions don't limit me. My work begins with the intention of utilizing characteristics of that old world tradition to break through the socially held boundaries of past artistic and cultural heritage. Taking modern inspirations into and against medieval tradition, I work to create art that surprises, provokes, and challenges the vision of "stained glass" that most people hold.

exhibitions