Rob Snyder is an American glass artist living on Vashon Island in the Puget Sound.
Biography
Rob Snyder, a Northwest native, is an accomplished glass artist living and operating his studio on Vashon Island, Washington. Rob’s unique work from kiln cast glass has been nationally recognized in solo exhibitions, museums, private and corporate collections, group shows, and various publications. Creating art for nearly thirty years, Rob was an early pioneer in the glass fusing movement. Over the years he has made important contributions as an artist, designer and builder of glass equipment, assistant to notable fine artists, glass technician, and teacher.
Rob’s career began in 1975 at the Bullseye Glass Company, a small glass studio in Portland, Oregon. The company produced hand-made sheets of glass for the stained-glass industry. Working with notable glass legend Daniel Schoewer, Rob eventually became both a designer and fabricator of glass furnaces, ovens, and glass-making machines. During this time period, he also began making art with glass which inspired him to create a glass blowing co-op in Portland. In 1980, Rob and others at Bullseye began addressing the industry’s technical challenges with fusing glass. Largely influenced by Rob’s work, a new glass fusing movement began. Rob’s time at Bullsesye served as his foundation in glass, both as a technician and artist.
By 1984, Rob had showed his own art at the Traver Sutton Gallery in Seattle, and has also become involved with the renowned Pilchuck Glass School. He moved to Seattle in 1987 to be part of the thriving glass community. While his focus would become increasingly directed on making art, the expertise gained at Bullseye had launched his career as a notable designer and fabricator of glass equipment for prominent artists and schools including Dale Chihuly, The Pilchuck Glass School, Benjamin Moore, Brian Rabino, James Nowak, and others.
Over several years in the Seattle community, Rob continued to grow. While at Pilchuck Glass School he served as a student, staff person, emerging artist, and equipment vendor. He studied with Klaus Moje, Bertile Valline, and was exposed to many other notable glass legends and visiting fine artists. Working as an assistant for Douglas Hanson and Nancy Mee, Rob was exposed to a variety of creative processes; he worked with large-scale architectural installations and with bodies of work for solo shows. Working for Linda Farris Gallery, he was responsible for layout and show installations, providing experience in displaying art and connecting him to local and international artists. Rob also worked as an art teacher at the Bush School where he explored his ability to communicate and facilitate the language of art.
Underlying his various assistant positions, studies, and teaching was his commitment to making his own art; this included exploring mediums such as wood, plaster, steel, and paint. In 1990, his first solo exhibition was staged at the King County Arts Council. His second solo show was held in 1994 at the White Bird Gallery in Cannon Beach, Oregon, and that same year his work was included in a group show at the Museum of American Folk Art in New York. A series of other shows followed.
Since 2004, Rob’s growth as an artist and person has flourished. One significant influencer was guidance from the late, Seattle glass legend Don Foster. Another catalyst was Rob’s move to Vashon Island where he has dedicated these last years to his kiln glass casting process and to working with objects in nature.
In addition to numerous group showings, Rob has held solo shows at Habatat Galleries Chicago and at William Traver Gallery Tacoma. He has also participated annually in Habatat’s prestigious International Invitational Show. In 2007, his work was shown at The Museum of Northwest Art and The Midland Art Museum.
Currently, Rob is working on a large commission for a private collector and on several other pieces to be included in shows around the country. Rob is represented by Freisen Gallery in Sun Valley Idaho, Abmeyer and Wood Gallery in Seattle Washington, Echt Gallery in Chicago Illinois, and Austin Arts Projects in Palm Desert California. In addition, Rob is expanding his gallery representation both nationally and internationally. To meet the growing demands for his art, he is undertaking the creation of Steppingstone, an artist residency program on his property on Vashon Island.