Deanna McGillivray
Glass Artist
Deanna McGillivray born and raised in Calgary AB works between her home studio and glass blowing studio in Canmore. If someone had asked a young Deanna what she wanted to be when she grew up, the reply every time would have been “I want to be an artist”.
With a strong interested in both 2 dimensional and 3 dimensional mediums such as painting, drawing and ceramics, she applied to attend the Alberta College of Art and Design. With the original intention of perusing the photograph or ceramic arts, Deanna encountered hot glass in her very first semester and was immediately attracted to this unique and challenging art form. The draw to the heat, flame and precarious nature of working with a material you not only couldn’t touch but also was partly liquid at times provided endless challenges and fascinations.
“The dance of glassblowing is delicate, smooth and seamless. A juggling act between hot and cold, solid and liquid along with a touch of magic.”
Post graduation in 2007, Deanna starting blowing glass at the Hot Glass Studio in Canmore, run by Canadian glass artist Susan Gottselig. She formed a creative community between Canmore and Calgary, which gave her not only a beautiful place to work but also mentorship that helped her formulate her developing art practice. In 2013, Susan retired and Deanna along side three fellow glass artists took over the shop to form Fireweed Glass Studio.
“Working in Canmore and having a unobstructed view of the Three Sisters mountain range from the studio window provides endless inspiration. I could not ask for a better place to quietly observe the ever changing seasons, the unique wildlife of the Rocky Mountains along side the teal blue glacier rivers and lakes. The drive between Calgary and Canmore is equally spectacular. It’s a true joy to transition between the bold yellow canola fields into the rolling foothills and mountains. Our landscape rapidly changes due to different weather patterns giving the drive a completely different feel every time.”
Deanna’s current focus of the Alberta landscape, lands her between exploring both blown and fused glass. Fused Glass allows her to investigate a more literal translation of landscape art. She currently is developing a layering technique using a combination of partially melted flat and crushed glass along side hand drawn decals of trees and vegetation unique to both prairie and mountain landscapes. Her blown glasswork has become her abstract interpretation of the same subject. The fall of 2020 marks 16 years of working with glass.
The artwork of Deanna McGillivray is represented by Rowles & Company, Alberta’s Corporate Gift and Art Gallery in Edmonton, Alberta Canada
