Low Down Articles
Artist Profiles - Marilyn French St. George and Richard Stoker
Article 63 of 73
From the book Artists of the Gatineau Hill by Catherine Joyce. This article first appeared in the "Artist Profiles" column in the April 5, 2006 issue of the The Low Down to Hull and Back News.
Reprinted with permission. Search complete list of Low Down Articles.
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A Marriage of Science and Art
When glass artists Marilyn French St. George and Richard Stoker met in England in their twenties, they were both studying audiology - a branch of science dealing with hearing and hearing impairment.
From a background in math and physics, Marilyn had long been fascinated with the possibilities of architectural sound - how building design could enhance the spoken word, as exemplified by the long naves of medieval churches where the priest could be heard even at the back. Richard, hearing-impaired from birth, had come from the States where he had taught science to deaf children and prepared students to become teachers of the deaf. An advanced degree in audiology would allow him to pursue his scientific and empathetic concerns.
Science brought them together but a mutual passion for art would shape their lives. Both had grown up loving art but lacked successful role models to follow. Coincidentally, both their mothers had won scholarships to study art (his, music, hers, painting) but had been discouraged by their families. There was no economic basis for such pursuits.
It was during a five year stint as Assistant Professor of Audiology at Penn State University that Richard began making stained glass as a way to balance the pressures of work Marilyn soon became involved. When they moved to old Montreal they spent every Sunday afternoon at a nearby stained glass studio. With Richard at McGill and Marilyn commuting to Nortel in Ottawa, where she designed leading-edge products for the hearing-impaired, Sunday became an oasis of sanity for them both.
From then on, wherever they moved as their careers in audiology intensified, creating in glass became their mutual lifeline. It challenged their love of design, their skill at engineering solutions, and their desire to offer beauty and meaning to others.
Three turning points precipitated their final commitment. Richard suffered a stroke and underwent a quadruple by-pass, and then the tech meltdown laid Marilyn off at Nortel. A 20 year hobby could now become a shared business.
Since 2001, Marilyn and Richard have been slowly building a devoted following for their exquisite art pieces - lamps, tiles, murals and windows. They do commissioned glass installations, meeting with clients to discover what they long for in their homes - something unique that will answer the emotional as well as physical context.
Marilyn observes, "Glasswork is magical. It reaches out and encompasses you in a way most other art doesn't. To stand in the light that it creates - to be bathed in all those colours - is to be in the presence of something much larger than the physical space it occupies. Glass is such an ancient art, rich in history and story. Is it matter or energy? It's both."
Using a whole range of glassworking techniques and skills, often incorporating 3-D elements such as crystal, moonstone, obsidian, or thin, translucent pieces of natural rock, Marilyn and Richard strive to exceed expectations. They are currently creating limited editions of original work inspired by the sculptures of Frederick Remington for the Remington Museum in Ogdensburg, New York. The marriage of science and art finds them at home in a medium that has become their life's work.