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DON‘T RISK LOSING PRICELESS MEMORIES! Bedminster, NJ | 908-367-2001 | www.archivalcompany.com VIDEO TO DVD & DIGITAL FORMATS: VHS, VHS-C, H I 8, HDV, D IGITAL 8, M INI DV, U-M ATIC 3/4”, B ETA SP, SX, S UPER 8/8 MM , 16 MM CREATE YOUR DIGITAL LEGACY! Convert your old media to a digital format and enjoy your family videos on your TV. No DVDs required! 15% OFF WITH THIS AD & % $ ## & % $ !$% "! Three Generations of Art Glass - Vandermark Merritt Studios September 1 - October 30, 2016 BernARTsville Art Walk Artist Reception September 2, Friday, 6-9pm 5 Morristown Road, Bernardsville, NJ 07924 • 908-963-0365 www.studio7artgallery.com Hours: Wed.-Sat., 10-4pm and by appointment Fine Art Gallery #ilovebernardsvillenj Studio 7 Fine Art Gallery in Bernardsville was founded almost twelve years ago as a place for New Jersey artists to exhibit and offer their work for sale. The gallery is the whole second floor, in a historic building in Bernardsville which was the dance hall in the 1870’s. From the time of ancient Rome, functional glass was made to be used in everyday life. In 1964 Harvey Littleton began to experiment with using a team to make glass, as an art form, and the Studio Glass Movement was born. In 1971, Dale Chihuly founded his glass blowing school, Pilchuck, north of Seattle. Not long after, in 1973, Jerry Vandermark founded the Vandermark Glasshouse of Liber- ty Village in Flemington, NJ. Each of these groups experimented with this new 2300 degree, molten, uncontrollable medium, making shapes from abstract forms to bowls and pitchers. Soon they discovered that by adding chemicals, such as cobalt to make blue, they could change the color of the glass, making each piece more creative. Stu- dio Glass required a team of glass blowers, gaffers, cold workers, sand blasters, engravers and carvers and studio maintenance staff to keep the furnaces burning, 24-7, year-round. Young artists were brought in and trained on the job, starting with sweeping up the shards of glass trimmed from a piece, to learning how to blow glass, add decoration and finish off the piece, place it in the annealing oven to cool down, and grinding down the mark left by the punty rod. Doug Merritt joined the team of Vandermark in 1972. By 1974 the studio was marketing contemporary art glass. In 1977 they were the featured artists at the American Paperweight Collectors Association meeting at Wheaton Village. This was the first of over 50 honors that they received. In 1979 they began experimenting with creating cameo glass pieces for which they became famous. In 1982 they were featured in “2000 Years of Cameo Masterpieces” published by Corning Museum. Their intricate insculpture carved diatreta paperweights came next, filled with flowers and butterflies. Perfume bottles and heavy cased vases were made more recently. In 1999 they were listed in ‘Who’s Who in America.” The art of Vandermark Merritt Glass Studios is in the permanent col- lections of museums all over the country including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art, Smithsonian Insti- tute, Boston, Chrysler, Newark, Toledo and Wheaton Museums and Colonial Williams- burg, to name a few. On a recent trip to Swe- den we found their glass in the Swedish Glass Museum in Vaxjo. In December 2015, the furnaces of Vander- mark Merritt Glass were turned off for the last time. This is especially sad for me and the patrons of Studio 7 who had attended many glass blowing demonstrations at the Vander- mark Merritt Hot Shop, hosted by Studio 7 since 2010. In 2012 Mr. Merritt began to teach extensively, including classes for both children and adults. He also hosted hundreds of “Make Your Own” glass experiences, in an effort to spark the interest of the next gener- ation in this exciting art form. We are honored to be hosting an exhibition of the hundreds of pieces of art glass that represent the history of a this great New Jersey glass studio. As Doug has retired and he is the last of the three gen- erations of the studio, most of the pieces will be for sale. This is incredible opportunity to own a piece of New Jersey History. End of an Era, Three Generations of Art Glass – Vandermark Merritt Studios will be on dis- play from September 1 through October 30, 2016 at Studio 7 Fine Art Gallery. The BernARTsville Art Walk artist Reception with Doug Merritt will be on Friday, September 3, 2016, 6-9pm. Please contact Kathleen Palmer at 908-963-0365 for more information. Gallery hours are Wednesday-Saturday, 10- 4pm at 5 Morristown Road, Bernardsville, NJ 07924. Whether it is a beautiful painting or a magical piece of historic glass you “need” to brighten your home or office, Studio 7 can offer you more options than you knew existed in New Jersey and by New Jersey Artists.. . END OF AN ERA Three Generations of Art Glass – Vandermark Merritt Studios By: Kathleen Palmer, Director, Studio 7 Fine Art Gallery Connection www.theconnectionsnj.com