Where I Found You Painting

Lithuania native Alina B(isikirskaite) is a contemporary glass artist. Her love for glass design began at Vilnius Academy of Fine Arts, where she learned techniques including: blown glass, fusing, etching, casting, and stained glass; under the instruction of Valmantas Gutauskas, apprentice of the acclaimed Dale Chihuly. She also studied art history at the Akademie der Bildenden Kunste Munchen, where she found inspiration in Franz Klein, Egon Schiele, and Gustav Klimt. Subsequent years have seen more travel for Alina, including moving to Connecticut in 2010. And although she will always value her academic education, she enjoys artistic experimentation and investigation outside the classroom; paying tribute to traditional technique whilst embracing ‘creating in the now’ and ‘letting go’. Today, Alina’s preferred glass medium is a mirror. She manipulates the silver layer with acids and paint. Surprising passages of color and pattern, entwined with preserved reflective areas, create a charged, fluid composition that responds to light and environment. There are two things that fascinate me when working with mirrors: that my “canvas” is a challenging surface to work with – glass is fragile, silver is temperamental. And the introduction of a finished piece into an environment. Each new space or angle engages the viewer; reflections of light or rooms become a part of the piece. In a way, these mirror paintings are never-ending creations.