Glass used to create illusion of perspective
FRANKLIN TWP — After years of practice, hobby painter Carolyn Pyle learned to create the illusion of perspective and shadows on a two-dimensional canvas.
Yet to achieve real depth, Pyle now selects a glue gun instead of a brush.
Using store-bought shadow boxes and panes of glass, Pyle creates multidimensional landscapes that pull the onlooker's eye into her imaginary world.
To create her landscapes, Pyle first paints a horizon, tree line or backdrop on a piece of canvas, trimmed to fit the shadow box.
Moving from the back of the image to the foreground, she uses successive pieces of glass to paint trees, animals, buildings or fences placed at the foreground of the photo.
In several of her pieces, snow is painted on each of the four panes, creating the illusion of snow falling in front of some items and behind others.
Working with one layer at a time, Pyle periodically stacks the pane in progress over the previous pieces to ensure the viewer will see each layer of the landscape as she sees it in her mind.
Once all the pieces are finished, she layers them in a frame with a quarter-inch space separating the glass pieces.
To create space between the layers, Pyle affixes plastic beads to the shadow box. The canvas backdrop serves as the back of the box.
Pyle discovered the process of layering images while watching painter Priscilla Hauser create similar images on a television program.
"Ithought of it myself years ago and never did anything with it,"she said of the glass painting concept.
Though anxious to try her hand at the glass creations, Pyle was unable to locate Hauser's instructional book in stores. Luckily, her sister Barb Eisler of Muddy Creek Township came across a copy at a yard sale.Using a design from Hauser's book, Pyle's first creation was a pine tree on a snowy landscape.Unlike her current pieces, the book's designs mounted images in traditional picture frames, limiting the number of glass panes Pyle could use to add detail.A homemaker, Pyle took an interest in art during childhood, when she watched her father sketch designs for well-drilling tools.Pyle was not alone in her fascination with art, noted her sister, Jane Kradel of Muddy Creek Township.Kradel, who often looks to her sister for art ideas said their interest in art has been passed down to their children and grandchildren.Though raising children kept her busy, Pyle and two her children tried craft projects and enrolled in occasional art classes.When her children had grown and moved out of the house, Pyle once again got the urge to express her artistic side.Pyle took up oil painting after watching television shows by painter William Alexander.In addition to her landscapes on canvas, Pyle used acrylic paints to decorate household items like buckets, coffee pots and storage boxes."If it doesn't move, it gets painted eventually," she joked.
Though most of her shadow boxes have been created as gifts, Pyle has been commissioned to create boxes for her relatives to give away."It's something you can hand down to your children,"said Kradel of the paintings she has received.Among the works that decorate Pyle's home are a wintry forest scene with snow falling among trees and an array of potted plants, lined up in rows.Her experience has also inspired Kradel, who has created her own paint-free version of the art form.Using multiple copies of photographs or greeting cards, Kradel carefully cuts out elements of an image and adheres them to glass, turning an existing, two-dimensional piece into something with depth."I just wait till she gets (ideas), then Iget them off her,"said Kradel.
