Judith Schaechter: Redefining Stained Glass as Fine Art
By single-handedly revolutionizing the craft of stained glass through her unique aesthetic and inventive approach to materials, Judith Schaechter championed her medium into the world of fine art. The content of her work – which gives voice to those who experience pain, grief, despair, and hopelessness – resonates with viewers, leaving a profound and lasting impression.
In 1983, Schaechter graduated with a BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design Glass Program and moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where she is now an adjunct professor at The University of the Arts. Her current work was on view in October 2016 at Claire Oliver galley in New York City, in an exhibition titled The Life Ecstatic.
Schaechter’s exhibition history includes the 2002 Whitney Biennial and a collateral exhibition of the Venice Biennale in 2012. Her work can be found in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum in New York; the Victoria and Albert Museum in London; the Hermitage in Russia; the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; The Corning Museum of Glass, Corning, New York; and The Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC.
Schaechter found success early and has sustained it throughout her career. In 2008 she was named a USA Artists Rockefeller Fellow and in 2013 was inducted to the American Craft Council College of Fellows. She is the recipient of many grants including the Guggenheim Fellowship, two National Endowment for the Arts Fellowships, and The Louis Comfort Tiffany Award, to name but a few.