Breaking Through: The Glass Ceiling Project

Organized by Natalie Sakurai, “Breaking Through: The Glass Ceiling Project” is a collaborative exploration of the “glass ceiling” and its evolving significance. This project questions the enduring relevance of this metaphor for gender inequality in the workplace and beyond. Despite significant advancements, women, especially women of color, still face systemic barriers and wage disparities. The overturning of Roe v. Wade exemplifies a broader attempt to suppress women’s rights. By engaging with diverse women in our community, we’ve discovered a spectrum of perspectives on the glass ceiling’s impact. Our research highlights that societal shifts, like equitable childcare responsibilities, are crucial for dismantling these barriers. “The Glass Ceiling Project” seeks to illuminate these complexities.

Collaborators

Amy Vidra
Erin Kaczkowski
Heather Hogan
Ianna Nova Frisby
Muzi Li Rowe
Natalie Sakurai (Lead Artist)

A Different Kind of Collaboration

Our collaboration for “Breaking Through: The Glass Ceiling Project” was guided by a unique structure focused on exchanging ideas and working with shared materials (broken glass), rather than on a shared artwork.

Phase One

Natalie began by meeting each collaborator individually to discuss their views on the “glass ceiling.” They explored what it meant to them, its relevance today, and its evolution since 1978, when it symbolized gender biases preventing women from advancing to top positions. She asked them to envision it as a tangible object—what did it look like, feel like? What made it personally impactful to them?

Based on these conversations, Natalie crafted a 14”x 14”+/- glass panel for each collaborator, fusing various glasses in a kiln to represent their perceptions of the ceiling and her aesthetic interpretation. The choice of fused glass was particularly fitting, directly referencing the glass in the metaphor. It also symbolized the concept of breaking something to create something new. She cut large sheets of glass into smaller pieces, arranged them with intention but without complete control over the outcome, and then fused them in a kiln. Natalie worked intuitively with the results to align them with both her aesthetic and the collaborator’s vision, aiming to create something beautiful while also encouraging the desire to break it.

Phase Two

Upon completing the panels, the group gathered together. Each collaborator broke their panel, symbolically shattering their personal glass ceilings. This cathartic act, shared among them, was both integral to the project and exhilarating.

They divided the broken pieces and returned to their own studios to create new works. This transformative process aimed to empower them, encouraging the integration of glass shards with other media to produce meaningful art reflective of their experiences.