B a r n e y Z e i t z BIOGRAPHY Barney Zeitz has lived solely off the sale of his artworks in glass, metals and drawing since 1972. Most of this work has been built on commission for public spaces and private residences across the United States. He is proficient in both leaded and Tiffany techniques, but since 1977, has developed a style of fused and bonded stained glass that is truly unique. 

His skills as a welder/fabricator of metals developed over many years of making frames and screens for his glass projects. Since designing and building his studio/ home/ show space on Martha's Vineyard, he has fabricated metal furniture, lighting fixtures, trellisses and ceremonial objects for the home.

In 1993, Zeitz designed a memorial for the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Providence, R.I. on a competition basis. The design for an outdoor, abstract steel and bronze sculpture measuring 144" tall was unanimously chosen by members of three organizations. This sculpture was dedicated on November 9, 1993, the anniversary of Kristalnacht, and was the subject of a documentary video by Ian Ellerby. 

He has since been commissioned by the Wang Center for Performing Arts in Boston, to design and build a sculpture in metal and glass in memory of Walter Suskind, a Dutch Jew who saved 1200 children during the Holocaust. Barney Zeitz feels that it is his responsibility as a public artist to produce work appropriate to each situation, yet stay true to himself as a contemporary artist. METALWORKING -- Forged and welded steel, stainless steel, bronze. Zeitz uses all hand forged and welding techniques in his metal sculpture and lighting. There is no casting involved. Everything is cut from sheets or bars and hammered hot or cold, then welded with either gas or electric welders. He uses hand tools for grinding and polishing. Bronze is applied using gas welding onto the surface of steel. Zeitz will devote many hours applying bronze with this technique to give an ancient Etruscan quality, like is has been buried for thousands of years. Another inovative technique Zeitz incorporates into his work is inlaid bronze lettering, done by carefully cutting and filling openings in the plate steel. This is a laborious technique but well worth the effort for its permanence and subtlety. GLASSWORKING -- Leaded Stained Glass Stained glass(1/8"thick average) held together with lead cames (H)shapes. FUSED STAINED GLASS -- Stained glass fused together with heat (1600F). Zeitz crushes sheets of imported stained glass in a variety of colors, screening them into different grades. He can cut more carefull shapes from a full sheet when needed. The construction is like a combination of a collage and a sand painting. The average thickness of a fused glass tile is 1/4", but can vary from 1/8" to 3/8". After firing in a kiln, Zeitz grinds the edges to fit a specific pattern. Depending on the project and scale, Barney has worked out several methods for building windows with these "tiles". The most elaborate is the FUSED and BONDED techique, where interlocking tiles are laminated cold with epoxy or silicone onto a plate glass (1/4"). This is extremely durable and their are no lines interfering with the design. The FUSED and LEADED technique assembles the tiles with a high-heart lead came. The configuration of the lead lines can be as ornate as he chooses, and does not interfere with the flow of the glass work. FUSION CAST GLASS Barney has made molds for casting glass by welding stainless steel and lining them with a ceramic fibre material. He uses the same crushed glass from the fused FUSED and SLUMPED STAINED GLASS This is a method Zeitz uses to make his lampshades for the Pagan Lamp, wall sconces and Torchiere, that have been featured in Architectural Digest (May 1997- p.178) He takes a ring of fused glass and fires it on clay molds, reaching into the kiln when neccessary with tools to manipulate the glass.