"TRANS : PERSPECTIVE" - Chapel Hagfors Center, Augsburg University, Minneapolis, USA

in collaboration with Bebe Keith

Client: Augsburg University
Architect: HGA
Photo credits: Bebe Keith

Technique: silk screened, airbrushed and hand painted laminated safety glass.

I had worked with Glasmalerei Peters before, but this project was much more complicated. However, I was told that if I could dream it, they could do it, and they did not disappoint! They even worked with a metal fabricator in their area to come up with the framework for the sculpture. The glass was beautiful and the final project is quite magnificent!

– Bebe Keith, Artist

DESCRIPTION: 1 Corinthians 14:26 – “When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for building up.” The glass sculpture “Trans:Perspective” reflects the dynamic and ever changing campus of the university. Augsburg is changing physically, currently with this new building. It is changing with the world in these last 150 years, keeping up with new areas of study and attitudes. The student body is also changing, making it one of the most diverse in the country. Their needs within a chapel are also changing, but what remains is that the chapel is a place of tranquility, of sanctuary, of quiet contemplation. This sculpture is a network, a beating heart, a beacon, a quilt, a welcome. It represents learning and transforming, joining and coming together. When you enter the room, you are be met with its warm, rich colors glowing and casting light onto the floor below. As you start to circle the room, its shape will appear to change, but it will always be the same sculpture.

What is changing is your very own perspective. You are the one that is changing. As you reach the front window of the room, look at the sculpture. It now appears to be a cross. Some may never see this. The curious are the ones who will be rewarded. The glass is be painted with the patterns of cultures from across the globe, reflecting the diversity of the student body. They will be somewhat distressed to recognize the history of the students and the campus itself. Some colored panels are be left unpatterned, recognizing that the evolution of Augsburg is not complete. There is more to come, and these panels symbolize the unknown future.

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