"The emotional vocabulary of faces remains unchanging over time, a shared language that gives a gift of enabling us to recognize ourselves in each other."

Originally trained as a painter, Veruska Vagen spent years living in the Southwest where she maintained a studio and became accomplished in oil, watercolor and mixed media. Her work with glass enameling brought Vagen to the renowned Pilchuck School in Stanwood, Washington, which changed the course of her life. Vagen moved to Stanwood in 1993 and served 12 years with the William Morris Studio, during which time she developed a unique mosaic technique called dot de verre.

In the rich tradition of ancient mosaics, Vagen's current work focuses on the portrait in a contemporary fused glass format. Inspired by art history, an intriguing visage or compelling character, she sees the human countenance as offering a timeless form of communication and relationship.

Education

Pilchuck Glass School

Northern Arizona University, BFA

University of Colorado

Awards

2002       Special Recognition Award, Spiritual III International Art Exhibition, Period Gallery,

Omaha, NE

2001       Jurors' Award, National Christian Art Exhibition, Farmington, NM

               Best of Show, Second International Christian Art Exhibition, Seaside Gallery, Nags

Head, NC

2000       People's Choice, Special Group & Jurors' Awards, National Christian Art Exhibition,

Farmington, NM

1999       Nomination, Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation Award

1992       Jurors' Award of Merit, Westmoreland Art Nationals, Greensburg, PA

1991       First Place, Feet of Glass, National Competition, Baltimore, MD

1990       Nomination, Saxe Award, Pilchuck Glass School

1989       Jurors' Award, The Fine Art Of Craft, Tohono Chul Exhibition Hall, Tucson, AZ

SELECTED EXHIBITIONS

2008       Glorious Glass: Translucent and Opaque, The Arts Center, St. Petersburg, FL

2007       Behind Glass: Creativity and Collaboration, The Arts Center, St. Petersburg, FL

2006       It's All About Beads, Pismo Fine Art, Denver, CO

2005       Multiplicity: Glass in All Its Glory, Sea-Tac International Airport, Seattle, WA

2004       The Havery Collection: International Glass, Mobile Museum of Art, Mobile, AB

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2003       Fabulous Faces, Solo Retrospective Exhibition, Century Square, Seattle, WA

               2+2=Art: The Art of Mathematics, Arts Council of Snohomish County, Everett, WA

               Glorious Glass: Color & Form, Sea-Tac International Airport, Seattle, WA

2002       Pilchuck Glass School At 30, Sea-Tac International Airport, Seattle, WA

               Venice International Art Biennial, Venice, Italy

2001       Jubilee Christian Art Show, Art & Cultural Center, Fallbrook, CA

               National Christian Art Exhibition, San Juan College, Farmington, NM (Award)

2000       Spiritual III, International Art Exhibition, Period Gallery, Omaha, NE (Award)

               Chaos Theory, Milan Art Center, Milan, Italy

               National Christian Art Exhibition, San Juan College, Farmington, NM (Award)

               Creativity & Collaboration Pilchuck Exhibition, Seattle Center, Seattle, WA

               Glass at the Millennium, Sea-Tac International Airport Seattle, WA

               Faces, Verizon Exhibit, Bellevue, WA

1999       2nd Macedonian Visual Poetry Festival, Gallery Marko Cepenkov, Prilep, Macedonia

               The End is Near, Charles A. Wustum Museum of Art, Racine, WI

               Clearly Magic, Port Angeles Museum of Art, Port Angeles, WA

               Pilchuck Exhibition, Sea-Tac International Airport, Seattle, WA

               History of the World Gallery, Camano Island, WA

1998       Lost & Found, Port Angeles Museum of Art, Port Angeles, WA

               Pilchuck Exhibition, Sea-Tac International Airport, Seattle, WA

1997       Evergreen State College, Olympia, WA

               Passion Afire, City Center, Seattle, WA

               International Exempla Exhibition, Munich, Germany

1996       Permanent Collection ñ Glass Sphere Museum, Tokyo, Japan

               Arts Council of Snohomish County, Everett,WA

1995       A Powerful Presence, Pilchuck Exhibition, Seattle Center, Seattle, WA

               Sedona Art Center, Sedona, AZ

               Shemer Art Center, Phoenix, AZ

               Pilchuck Exhibition, Sea-Tac International Airport, Seattle, WA

1994       Pilchuck Exhibition, Sea-Tac International Airport, Seattle, WA

               Pilchuck Exhibition, History of the World Gallery, Camano Island, WA

               Northern Arizona University Art Museum, Flagstaff,AZ

1993       Pilchuck Glass School Staff Exhibit, Stanwood, WA

1992       Northern Arizona University Art Museum, Flagstaff,AZ

               Galerie International, Dallas, TX

               Biennial Crafts 1992, Fuller Lodge Art Center, Los Alamos, NM

               Crafts National 26, Penn State University, University Park, PA

               Westmoreland Art Nationals, Greensburg, PA (Award)