Get to know
Grateful Iris Glass
a.k.a. Monteen Feldt of Kalispell, Montana
What's in a name?
The triad that inspired the name Grateful Iris Glass
The Flower
The bearded iris is my favorite flower. I see beautiful symbolism of gratitude in these hearty tubers. They bask like peacocks in the summer sun, grateful for the warmth & the rain. Then they retreat to their most simple form and find safety & solitude within the cold, harsh earth of winter.
The iris is a lovely example of living in harmony with all of the seasons of life.
Me
At its core, I am Grateful Iris Glass. The combination of my sister nicknaming me after the goddess of the rainbow as a kid & my unebbing appreciation of just about anything that qualifies as a noun, then just add glass.
You
What brings me joy? Well one thing is the joy of others. Seeing a smile grow and eyebrows raise as someone takes in my art is one of my greatest gifts. All I can hope for is that my art leaves your eyes (irises) happy (grateful).
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All about
the artist
Hi, I'm Monteen Feldt!
Maybe the variety in my art and preferences come from living All over the world by the time I was 7 and then growing up in the beautiful and natural place that is Kalispell, Montana. It is probably a bit of that and a bit of stardust given that my sister nicknamed me Iris, as in Goddess of the Rainbow, at a very young age. I think I've done the name proud over the years.
As far back as I can remember I was making art. My first 'formal' class was at our neighbor's in Tyrone, GA. Thanks to my 5 year old mind, she will forever have had the most in depth colorwheel I've seen.
By the time I was a preteen in Montana I was trading babysitting for formal pottery and various art lessons (I haven't done it in years but loved the wheel). At 13 I got the opportunity to help with a kids' art camp in trade for classes, and that summer we made the mural that adored a beloved restaurant in our town for years, The Knead Cafe.
My first glass experience was a mini mosaic workshop where I made a red tulip on a wooden plaque. It was magical. While I didn't get hooked on glass that day (I also, no joke, did Ukrainian Egg Decorating that day, and loved it, too), but the bulb was planted.
My appreciation for stained glass art was sparked inside the Historic Kalispell Mercantile Building, and more specifically the room and stained glass that now houses the Mercantile Steakhouse.
When I was a teenager, before that spot was a restaurant, it was once a yoga studio. I learned my first hand stand against the brick wall supporting those beautiful windows. I fell in love with their bold colors and lines, and after that I noticed every house in the original parts of town with stained glass windows.
As I grew older, I started to notice a lot of new houses that I thought need the addition of stained glass windows, and here we are, working toward the goal of beautifying my hometown and spreading smiles across the world one piece of stained glass art at a time.
Eye candy ahead!
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