Byron Jelden
bEHIND THE ART
My work is driven by a passion for antique glass objects and the transformation of discarded materials through assemblage. I repurpose car lights, cut crystal, tableware, eyeglasses, and scientific lenses, giving them new life and function within sculptural forms. Restoring historic stained glass introduced me to the techniques of master artisans, which I expand upon through methods rooted in their innovative craftsmanship. I work with the traditional copper foil process developed by Louis Comfort Tiffany in the 1880s, adapting it to contemporary assemblage-based construction.
I build chandeliers, mirrors, and window works on unexpected armatures; found objects like megaphone speakers or Weber grills are recontextualized as structural foundations. My work is inspired by light’s reflection and refraction through glass, creating shifting visual effects that change with the viewer’s movement and perspective. These pieces function as interactive optical environments, where distortion and clarity continually evolve.
Nostalgia and sustainability are central to my practice. Each work is composed of artifacts from a time when materials were made to last. By assembling and reconfiguring these remnants of the past, I preserve their material history while reimagining their narratives for the present.
