About me

Maja Zaplotnik

The beginnings of my familiarisation with glass are in 1999 when I had the first opportunity to observe the production of traditional stained glass. I remember being taken over by glass as a material and the medium to the extent I decided to embark on a quest to discover and explore its and my options.

The first years were marked by production of a variety of spatial forms and glazing in the Tiffany technique and classic stained glass. I have always been fascinated by tinted glass in appropriate spatial placement because of its speech at different times of the day, the play of light and shadow and colour shade overflow. Due to curiosity, enthusiasm and creative energy, I was soon oriented towards glass melting, which now remains my main interest.

Glass melting or fusion takes place in an oven at high temperatures, thus offering unlimited possibilities for experimenting with form and colour. Also other glass treatment techniques may be used, i.e. cold treatment, casting, pate de verre technique, elements of Murano glass.

In my view, glass resembles to a living organism and speaks in its own specific strange and challenging language and often conducts in a specific manner, which for me is a constant challenge.

Maja Zaplotnik

Critique

Design concept by Maja Zaplotnik is an original and sophisticated. Viewer is provided with dynamic visual experiences and content that is discreetly derivative and translated into a simple yet sophisticated and effective translucent whole. Artist’s works provide to the Slovenian space new expressive dimensions and values that are in the context of contemporary glass design quite rare, namely spatial light entities, ideally connecting technical expertise with a rich creative imagination. The author successfully upgrades the basic functionality of objects with specific aesthetic elements and colour accents that semantically and formally change the basic character of glass surfaces and layers. Glassware of Maja Zaplotnik includes paintings, sculptures, reliefs and lighting fixtures, in short thoroughbred artistic organisms that do not impose strict boundaries between artistic media. Her sculptural-design space installation are spontaneous and dynamic, "existent" beyond the standard definition of style and genre, but this is far from meaning that her motif contexts are not implemented consistently in harmony with the primary idea. Artist's abstract vision through the prism of glass of objectivity is unusual both in terms of design as well as implementation aspects. So we are dealing with a well-researched visual language that preserves the playful narrative, aesthetic and fluid-structural poetics of light relations. The most common theme of this specific art nature is the nature with luxury of its forms; an important factor is also dreams as well as wide variety impressions. We are faced with the newly defined world, self-contained designed and completed with a rich symbolism. The artist is looking for new meanings, transcendence and integrity. Her fine art reveals multisignification, sometimes emotionally subtle, sometimes violent and surprising. She speaks to us in an exciting, stylish and very distinctive artistic approach that can be perceived one way or another, depending on our mood.

Boštjan Soklič, Art Historian

References

  • Fakulteta za farmacijo
  • Golf zveza Slovenije
  • Grand hotel Union d.d.
  • Jadralna zveza Slovenije
  • Jahtni klub Portorož
  • Kobilarna Lipica
  • Kolesarska zveza Slovenije
  • Mestna občina Ljubljana
  • Občina Bovec
  • Sava d.d.
  • Sij, d.d.
  • Športna zveza Ljubljane
  • Timing Ljubljana
  • Veslaška zveza Slovenije
  • Časnik Finance, d.o.o.
  • Ljubljanska Borza d.d. Ljubljana
  • SKB banka d.d. Ljubljana
  • ...

Outlets

SEVERIA, Zeleni park, 6000 Koper
GALERIJA KAMEN, Linhartov trg 4, 4240 Radovljica
M-ARS galerija, Cankarjeva 4, 4000 Kranj
Anars d.o.o., Brnčičeva 13, 1231 Ljubljana
Atelje Laurus, Cesta svobode 19, 4260 Bled