Now Showing at Russell Day Gallery: Material Tension by Henry Jackson-Spieker

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Simon Krane

EvCC students observing Henry Jackson-Spieker’s art exhibit.

Material Tension, a gallery by Henry Jackson-Spieker, will be on display at the Russell Day Gallery from Sept. 23 – Oct. 31. Jackson-Spieker connects tension, balance and symmetry by working with materials including glass, bronze, steel and wood. 

According to the new Russell Day Gallery director Miles Labitzke, former art and printmaking instructor at Everett Community College, Jackson-Spieker wanted to break away from the traditional passive art gallery experience by creating art with the use of reflective surfaces and abstract installations to allow the viewer to interact with the actual pieces. The display includes two pieces that were made specifically with this concept in mind for the Material Tension exhibit.

Henry Jackson-Spieker is a Seattle based multidisciplinary artist with a Bachelors of Arts from Western Washington University. His work includes small sculptures and site specific installations, as well as large-scale public works at Seattle Center and Cary Hill Sculpture Park in New York. 

Simon Krane
Jackson-Spieker discusses his art with gallery observers.

The artist is also the recipient of several prestigious grants for his art including one from the Vermont Studio Center which is the largest international artists’ and writers’ residency program, as well as from the New Foundation Seattle, a philanthropic and cultural organization.

Jackson-Spieker has also been the Chihuly Garden and Glass Scholarship recipient, a $10,000 scholarship that is used for the furthering of education of the medium of glass in art through Pilchuck Glass School or Pratt Fine Arts Center, two leading glass art organizations in the U.S.

“I explore the constant push and pull of opposing forces that causes an unstable existence but ultimately gives way to a balanced unified duality. Combining different mediums creates a source of tension and conflict resulting in an unstable existence,” writes Jackson-Spieker in a statement regarding his work on his website.

I explore the constant push and pull of opposing forces that causes an unstable existence but ultimately gives way to a balanced unified duality. Combining different mediums creates a source of tension and conflict resulting in an unstable existence.

— Henry Jackson-Spieker

As well as being an artist himself, Jackson-Spieker is also a glass blowing and bronze casting instructor at Pratt Fine Arts Center, a non-profit arts education center. He is also a studio manager for established Seattle artist Marela Zacarias.

Located in Parks Student Union, the Russell Day Gallery has long played a vital role in creating a dialogue among students interested in the exhibits that have lived in the gallery walls over the years. 

“This is my first time at this gallery, I am surprised at the quality of the art,” said Taylor James, a student observing the Material Tension exhibit. “It feels like I’m in an art gallery in downtown Seattle.”

The Russell Day Gallery is named after a former Everett Community College art instructor who founded the gallery, and the gallery was later named after him in his honor. 

Under new direction from Miles Labitzke, students can be excited to see more contemporary art this year. Labitzke is excited to be showing work from a diverse pool of young and emerging artists in the coming year.

The Russell Day Gallery is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Friday and closed Saturday and Sunday. All displays are free and open to the public.