During the pandemic, Alex Hirsch was awarded a public art commission by Washington Arts Commission and Puyallup School District. She worked remotely with the committee, visited the campus using Covid precautions, and successfully completed the commission with the expertise of the Oregon fabricator, Fireart Glass. The faculty is now developing lesson plans that take advantage of her art work being part of their community.
From Alex’s website,
“Sensing Spring (above) is an abstract poetic composition designed to evoke sensations and conditions during the easy months of spring in the Pacific Northwest. Colors might suggest plant material and flowers. Spacious skies offer the cheer and comfort of moderate weather. It is an invitation to imagine.
Transitions of Fall (below) evokes our long progression of fall moving towards winter. Tellows in green suggests the early months while cool blues and grays intimate winter. Clouds and stars are recognizable among the abstract language of color and pattern. One might see an evocation of ice forming or a leaf turning. It is an invitation to remember.”
Alex loves the medium of watercolor for its intimacy, intuitive value and low-tech application. Using glass affords her great scale, wonderful color, architectural relevance and another kind of visual magic. She takes advantage of its performative nature that shifts in appearance with lighting and point of view. In the studio, she is focused on self-directed work and custom projects for public art and private clients. Her work is in collections including the United States Embassy (Bulgaria), Good Samaritan Hospital (Washington), City of Portland (Oregon), Oregon State University (Oregon), U.S. Aid (Uganda), Auburn High School (Washington), Sunrise Elementary (Washington), Hallmark Corporation (Kansas), Umpqua Bank (Oregon), ODS Companies (Oregon) and Southern Oregon University (Oregon).
Visit Alex’s website to learn more about this project and her work.