Richard Marquis
For nearly 60 years, pioneering artist Richard Marquis has experimented with form, pattern, pop culture, kitsch and humour. Technical skill and supreme attention to detail underlie his work – some pieces taking months to create, others a single day, the end result always the priority. Once a student and then-peer of Peter Voulkos and Ron Nagle, Marquis transitioned from ceramics to glassmaking in the late 1960s. A Fulbright scholarship and critical acclaim led him to Murano, where he was the first American permitted to blow glass in the Venini workshop. Traditional Venetian techniques informed his subsequent work, and he imported them stateside. Now based in Puget Sound, Marquis can look back on an oeuvre celebrated for its social commentary, indelible wit and incredible finesse.
For nearly 60 years, pioneering artist Richard Marquis has experimented with form, pattern, pop culture, kitsch and humour. Technical skill and supreme attention to detail underlie his work – some pieces taking months to create, others a single day, the end result always the priority. Once a student and then-peer of Peter Voulkos and Ron Nagle, Marquis transitioned from ceramics to glassmaking in the late 1960s. A Fulbright scholarship and critical acclaim led him to Murano, where he was the first American permitted to blow glass in the Venini workshop. Traditional Venetian techniques informed his subsequent work, and he imported them stateside. Now based in Puget Sound, Marquis can look back on an oeuvre celebrated for its social commentary, indelible wit and incredible finesse.
Meet the Maker:
Richard Marquis
Glassblowing extraordinaire Richard Marquis has an extremely prolific archive, including several hundred snowmen sculptures from his annual Frosty series. During the late 60s, he undertook a fellowship in Murano with Venini, where he picked up new techniques – the most prominent being the murrine cane, a learning he brought back to the States and consistently applied to his work moving forward.
