When Christopher Jeffries sends his handblown glass works to galleries around the world, he never knows where they’ll wind up.
But at the La Quinta Art Celebration, he always knows he’ll get to meet with potential clients in person—leading to custom wall-sculpture jobs and long-term friendships.
“It’s super-rewarding going to these shows and meeting clients and collectors, and being able to put artwork into their homes and into their lives,” he said. “You really do get to know your clients, create connections and make amazing relationships that last a lifetime.”
Jeffries Glass is one of the 185 participants in the La Quinta Art Celebration’s spring event this year. Organized by Scope Events with the city of La Quinta serving as lead sponsor, the event takes place at the La Quinta Civic Center from Thursday, Feb. 26, through Sunday, March 1.
The juried exhibition brings together artists from 28 states, plus Canada and Africa. Attendees can expect to see works spanning mediums including painting, glass, sculpture, ceramics and jewelry—with 23 artists participating for the first time. Beyond the art booths, the event features local food and beverage vendors as well as live performances.
One of the most notable aspects of the event is the caliber of artists it is able to attract. There’s the humanitarian photographer Lisa Kristine, a recipient of the Lucie Humanitarian Award; painter Erin Hanson, known for founding the “Open Impressionism” style; and sand-cast glass sculptor Marlene Rose, who was a National Endowment of the Arts grant recipient in 2007.
Accolades aside, the working artists who come to the show bring a bevy of techniques, experiences and skills forged across a lifetime of artistry. Jeffries, for instance, has been working in glass since falling in love with the medium while studying fine art at Chico State University. He went on to study in Italy, worked in an apprenticeship with master glassblower Igor Muller, and studied glass while living in the Czech Republic. He’s also taught at the historic Corning Museum of Glass in central New York, a haven for glass-blowing artists from around the world.
In the late 1990s, Jeffries began an apprenticeship with acclaimed American glass artist Dale Chihuly. Many locals may know Chihuly’s work from spots like Imago Galleries, the Palm Springs Art Museum, the Desert Willow Palm Desert and the Melissa Morgan Sculpture Garden.
During his time working with Chihuly, Jeffries helped create Chihuly’s famous “Fiori di Como” sculpture in the ceiling at the Bellagio in Las Vegas. The floral-inspired piece contains around 2,000 blown-glass pieces and weighs around 40,000 pounds. Jeffries recalls working in teams on the floor to create the individual flowers that were molded together in the final piece.
In 2001, he began his own company, Jefferies Glass, in Laguna Beach. The team consists of Jeffries; his wife, Jitka; and apprentices, many of whom come from the local glass program at Cal State Fullerton.
“We’re always working together as a group,” he said. “I’ll have someone set up the color and get the first gather on it, and do the color prep. Then they’ll hand it off to me, and I’ll be on my bench with an assistant who will be blowing into the pipe and shielding from the heat and helping me create the piece that we’re working on. Then they’ll put on the fireproof suit and they’ll carry it into the oven.”
The studio’s pieces radiate color, inspired by nature and travel, and can fit a range of tastes from mid-century to contemporary styles. Most of what Jeffries makes are custom pieces designed to fit a client’s living space, with a focus on wall installations that can add color and texture to vast spaces. Jefferies works directly with his clients to figure out what kind of story to tell and what type of piece will fit their home—whether it includes intersecting strips of color, or more rounded, puzzle-piece forms.
While it was the intensity and chemistry of the process that drew him to glass as a medium, it’s the relationships he has with patrons that are becoming the real reward, he said. Jeffries said he looks forward to coming to the desert—both for the serenity of the landscape and to hear how residents respond to his art.
“It’s really an honor to have our artwork in anybody’s home,” he said.
The La Quinta Art Celebration will take place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 26, through Sunday, March 1, at the La Quinta Civic Center, 78495 Calle Tampico. One-day tickets are $25; a multi-day pass, valid all four days, is $30. For tickets or more information, visit www.laquintaartcelebration.org.
