Winter Speaker Series 2024: Wayne Strattman

Wayne Strattman’s work in Plasma art and advanced forms of lighted glass sculpture encompasses over 30 years as an artist, researcher, teacher, advocate and author. Combining his background training in engineering with his love of sculpture and interest in the history of electricity—specifically those technologies using glass—Wayne not only taught himself the field without any formal glass training but also proceeded to pioneer many new techniques now intrinsic to his medium. Through exploring and researching every aspect of the subject from glassblowing methods to the design of vacuum equipment, gauges and high voltage electronic power supplies, Wayne began creating and teaching neon art, including a two-semester course in scientific glassblowing at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In addition to teaching, he wrote extensively for the neon art journal Sign of the Times, contributing over 100 articles and receiving the American Business Press editors’ Award for Technical Journalism. Wayne edited the textbook “Neon Techniques” which remains an industry standard. His work ultimately ventured beyond conventional neon into the wider field of Plasma, advancing the current technologies and patenting original lighting techniques.

Since 1983, Wayne’s Boston-based company Strattman Design has grown to become a global leader in crafting lighted glass forms. Combining glass, gas and electricity, Strattman creates kinetic plasma sculptures for use in museum displays, a range of commercial products and many other creative applications worldwide.

Wayne received the first and only PhD in Neon Art and Technology, by published papers from the UK University of Sunderland in 2008, for his many years of advocacy and advancement of this field. With a desire to foster the recognition of lighted glass sculpture—and encourage an ongoing engagement with the medium among emerging artists—Wayne has curated art exhibitions and supported the International Glass Art Society by serving on their Board of Directors and creating and endowing their “Critical Dialogue” lecture series that examines the relationship between today’s glass art practices and their place in the context of both historical and contemporary fine art. In 2017 Wayne was honored as the recipient of the International Glass Art Society’s annual Lifetime Membership Award. Wayne has taught master classes at Pilchuck Glass School, Penland School of Craft, Corning Museum of Glass, UrbanGlass, Norfolk and the International Festival of Glass in the UK. He recently authored another book about plasma art techniques, The Art of Plasma.

Presenting Sponsor

Series Sponsors

Anonymous
Johanna Becker
Dr. Joe Chazan
Mary Jennings
Susan and Bob Kieronski
Chas Miller & Birch Coffey
Santiago & Maureen Neville
Edwina Sebest
Cynthia Sinclair

Series Supporters

Eleanor Doumato

Speaker Accommodations

Catering Sponsor

Winter Speaker Series Committee

Johanna Becker, Chair
Cristin Searles Bilodeau, Director of Community Engagement
Eleanor Doumato
Joseph Gallichio
Toni Green
Susan Kieronski
Santiago Neville