Q&A with Glassmaker Andy Paiko

Andy’s latest work is currently untitled, but you can experience this intricate glass installation in the Byline Apartments lobby. The interview that follows has been lightly edited for brevity.

   Your work examines “mechanisms of functionality.” Can you share how this piece speaks to that focus?

   In my 30 years as a glassmaker, my interest has drifted away from what many people believe to be “art glass.” In particular, I am referring to the elaborately colored and patterned decorative vessels that are designed to sit on a pedestal or on a shelf, with no other function.

I like to make sculpture that references the history of technology and the ways humans have tried to transcend their sensory experience to both learn more about the nature of the world and to make their lives more efficient (i.e. spinning wheel/seismograph, polygraph, balance, metronome, musical instruments…). I also make sculptures and lighting that occupy interiors – to bring light and form into the architectural space, much as a chandelier would.

   This installation was inspired by the rotary printing press and the reams of newsprint that were used in printing the Oregonian, which was headquartered at this location from the 1970s to the 2000s. Talk to us about this!

   In referencing the type of printing press that the paper would have been printed on, I had to make design decisions that would adapt my idea both to my process as well as to the space. First, and most obvious, is that the “press” will be oriented on its side.

The cylinders and pulleys and gears that would feed the newsprint through the press are suspended vertically.

The rolls of newsprint, which normally weigh hundreds (if not thousands) of pounds, are to be represented by translucent linen cylinders that move from one end of the installation to the next, to replicate the journey of raw paper to a finished printed newspaper. The gears, spindles, pulleys, and drums that would animate the press are represented by hundreds of clear stylized blown-glass elements of varying sizes and textures.

   What has been the most fun element of this project?

   I’ve learned a lot about computer-assisted-design (CAD) from my generous and talented friend Pasha Kalhor, who has been essential to the development and planning of the installation. Additionally, with the scale of the piece and the number of parts to be made to fill the space, I have really been productive and creative in the glass shop. This is always an opportunity to hone my skills and train my hands and move into an even deeper dialogue with the glass and the spontaneity of 3D composition on a larger scale.

   What do you want people to appreciate the most when they view this work?

   The time and resources and planning required to make a truly unique piece of art in a large public building, and the risk and courage it takes all artists to put themselves out there, especially on a large scale. It is always my hope to invoke a feeling of curiosity, and ideally, wonder. I am a firm believer that we could all use a little more awe and wonder in our day-to-day lives.