Bonsai meets glass in the latest show of the Chris Nordin Studio, which opened during the golden twilight of a lovely summer’s day on Friday. Tucked into one of the handsome brick storefronts of Ann Street, between Main and Fourth, you will find a series of small reproductions of the famous Japanese art form interpreted in new and interesting ways from the representative artists for this show, called “Above Bonsai.”
The work of Jacob Nordin
The August 15 opening reception was the fine art debut for the son of the owner, Jacob Nordin. The younger Nordin is already an experienced artist who was essentially raised in and around making art, and works in teams most of the time, but this art was the first time he premiered fine art that was his own.
“Right now is an interesting creative journey for me because I’m running the Glass Academy in Dearborn,” Jacob Nordin said. He teaches art there with his mother and a team of four people he says, adding “I have ideas I want to represent, and art that I enjoy; pieces that I am made today I truly love and am proud to have here. … I’m very team oriented, so its very difficult for me to step to the side and have something that is just my own work, to not have my team involved, and not give recognition to people who made it possible for me.”
The Nordin family has been producing glass-based art for years now. The dazzling colors and interpretations of this type of art into a Midwestern context is the theme of the show.
The work of Brian Kritzman
Right till the end of September, the Nordin’s are being joined by Brian Kritzman, a professor of industrial design from Wayne State University. His piece, “Fisher With Eastern Hemlock” was inspired by the cracks in the sidewalk that you find throughout the Rust Belts urban spaces, suburban parking lots and industrial areas. He describes the piece as being like a Bonsai tree sprouted all on its own out of a crack in the sidewalk.
“I’ve always enjoyed plants. And a good friend of mine did Bonsai trees, and I’ve always appreciated aesthetically, so I thought I’d try my hand at it. Bonsai is very specific. It has a lot of rules … so I thought I’d challenge conventions, and try different things, and so over it naturally evolved over ten years,” Kritzman said. “What would happen if I set these trees into settings that were more regional, rather than referencing back to Japan?”
All of the art presented is hugely impressive. The difference is that Jacob’s pieces are all artificial, and as is typical with his father, is almost entirely made of glass. Kritzman, however, actually has a live Bonsai tree in the middle of his “Fisher With Eastern Hemlock” piece. He calls this series “American Bonsai Furniture.”
“I thought the glassworks was very imaginative, and colorful,” Diane Kramer told Current while attending Friday’s premier. “And Brian’s work is a great combination of nature and man-made structure.”
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Kritzman has been family friends with the Nordin’s for some years.When they realized that his Bonsai tree art would fit well into their mostly glass-based sculptural art—and since Jacob was already making Bonsai art too—having him be a guest artist seemed like a natural fit.
“I think that the alluringness of having artwork that was very small, within its own space, and precious, and so much about itself and not about other things is very important,” Chris Nordin said. Bonsai in particular “is about the entity itself; whether it’s a living plant like Brian makes, or it’s a glass plant that Jake makes, it’s still about the preciousness of that individual item.”
Visit the gallery
The gallery is now also open for any member of the public interested in swinging by and appreciate the art before it is gone. Whereas the gallery used to be open only by appointment, you can now come for free on Thursday and Friday from Noon-4pm, 10am-4pm on Saturdays and Sundays.
The show runs through September 28. All of the art is for sale with prices ranging from the high hundreds to low thousands. To inquire about purchases, you can reach the studio manager Rita Maloney at rita@chrisnordinstudios.com.
Drew Saunders is a freelance business and environmental journalist who grew up just outside of Ann Arbor. He covers local business developments, embraces his foodie side with reviews restaurants, obsesses over Michigan's environmental state, loves movies, and feels spoiled by the music he gets to review for Ann Arbor!
