Diane Quarles, Glass Artist
The Studio
Our art glass studio specializes in fused art glass impressionism created through the application of crushed and/or powdered glass applied in layers and fired at varying temperatures to achieve desired effects. From frit painted wall panels to dimensional glass sculpture, our work focuses on rich color, dimensional texture and the brilliance of refracted light.
Aspen Light Glass is designed and produced exclusively by Diane Quarles using all Bullseye Glass and all made in the US. Earthfire Arts Glass is also designed and made at the Aspen Light Glass Studio, while representing a collaborative effort with Ann Cheeks, fine artist and Joanne Taplin, metal artist.
Artist Statement
The arrangement of glass to capture and manipulate natural sunlight has opened a window into my mind's eye in how I view the world around me. Much like grains of sand on a beach or a drifting cloud in the sky, I have found a sense of purpose, place and order through the interpretation of glass and its ever-changing interaction with light.
Artist Biography
Each year on Easter Sunday, Diane would visit the First Presbyterian Church in Brenham, Texas with her grandparents. The church, built in the late 1800s, was simple and unsophisticated in its whitewashed clapboard siding and aged-oak pews, reminiscent of its early German heritage. In all its simplicity however, the church was always filled with a complex, heavenly light from the antique stained glass leaded windows. This childhood experience created a passion for manipulated light in glass that continues to influence her life's work today.
Diane took up stained glass and oil painting as a hobby during college in Texas. She continued working as a hobbyist until her retirement from city planning in 2007. In 2008, she decided to become a glass artist professionally and established Aspen Light Glass Studio, while expanding her work to include kiln-formed glass. In 2013, Ms. Quarles opened her first glass studio in Ridgway, Colorado and recently relocated to a larger studio in nearby Montrose where she now masters in glass frit and powdered glass palette knife paintings exclusively.
Diane Quarles' work can be found in galleries throughout the US. She has won several awards in glass, including first place in the blown/rolled glass category in the national Delphi Art Glass Festival (2011), work chosen in a regional fine art competition for permanent exhibition in Valley View Cancer Center (2012), selected "Best in Glass" at the Ridgway Rendezvous (2012) and placed second in the Delphi Art Glass Festival in the kiln-formed category (2015) and received honorable mention in glass as part of the North American Niche Awards (2017). Her commissioned work is also located in private glass collections in Texas, Alaska, Colorado, New York, California, Virginia, Wisconsin, Arizona, Washington, Missouri and Oregon and in public art collections in Denver and Glenwood Springs, Colorado.
The Studio
Our art glass studio specializes in fused art glass impressionism created through the application of crushed and/or powdered glass applied in layers and fired at varying temperatures to achieve desired effects. From frit painted wall panels to dimensional glass sculpture, our work focuses on rich color, dimensional texture and the brilliance of refracted light.
Aspen Light Glass is designed and produced exclusively by Diane Quarles using all Bullseye Glass and all made in the US. Earthfire Arts Glass is also designed and made at the Aspen Light Glass Studio, while representing a collaborative effort with Ann Cheeks, fine artist and Joanne Taplin, metal artist.
Artist Statement
The arrangement of glass to capture and manipulate natural sunlight has opened a window into my mind's eye in how I view the world around me. Much like grains of sand on a beach or a drifting cloud in the sky, I have found a sense of purpose, place and order through the interpretation of glass and its ever-changing interaction with light.
Artist Biography
Each year on Easter Sunday, Diane would visit the First Presbyterian Church in Brenham, Texas with her grandparents. The church, built in the late 1800s, was simple and unsophisticated in its whitewashed clapboard siding and aged-oak pews, reminiscent of its early German heritage. In all its simplicity however, the church was always filled with a complex, heavenly light from the antique stained glass leaded windows. This childhood experience created a passion for manipulated light in glass that continues to influence her life's work today.
Diane took up stained glass and oil painting as a hobby during college in Texas. She continued working as a hobbyist until her retirement from city planning in 2007. In 2008, she decided to become a glass artist professionally and established Aspen Light Glass Studio, while expanding her work to include kiln-formed glass. In 2013, Ms. Quarles opened her first glass studio in Ridgway, Colorado and recently relocated to a larger studio in nearby Montrose where she now masters in glass frit and powdered glass palette knife paintings exclusively.
Diane Quarles' work can be found in galleries throughout the US. She has won several awards in glass, including first place in the blown/rolled glass category in the national Delphi Art Glass Festival (2011), work chosen in a regional fine art competition for permanent exhibition in Valley View Cancer Center (2012), selected "Best in Glass" at the Ridgway Rendezvous (2012) and placed second in the Delphi Art Glass Festival in the kiln-formed category (2015) and received honorable mention in glass as part of the North American Niche Awards (2017). Her commissioned work is also located in private glass collections in Texas, Alaska, Colorado, New York, California, Virginia, Wisconsin, Arizona, Washington, Missouri and Oregon and in public art collections in Denver and Glenwood Springs, Colorado.
