About the Artist
Born almost blind, Joshua Hershman underwent years of vision therapy to train his visual cortex to comprehend peripheral vision and depth perception. Through this process, he became acutely aware of the curious nature of visual anomalies and light distortions. In these works, he explores the relationship between vision, light, and the photographic process. Using cast and polished glass, he discovers the optical aspects of the material and plays with the mechanics of vision.
Joshua currently lives between Murano, Italy, and Oakland, California. He received a diploma in craft and design from Sheridan College in Oakville, Canada, a BFA from California College of the Arts in Oakland, and an MFA from Alfred University in New York. He has taught his craft extensively, participated in international residencies, and received numerous awards. Hershman’s works were included in the 2021 Toyama International Glass Exhibition in Japan, Berengo Studio’s Glass Stress exhibition at Milles Garden Museum in Stockholm, Sweden, the Museum of Glass’s first LGBTQ+ exhibition titled Transparency, and Young Glass 2017, which traveled throughout Europe. His sculpture has been accepted into the permanent collection of the Museum of Glass in Tacoma Washington, the Ebeltoft Museum in Denmark, and the National Liberty Museum in Philadelphia.
Artist Statement:
The traditional film camera has all but disappeared from the contemporary landscape. It sits as an analog relic from a bygone era, but also serves as a critical historic object, as an evolutionary pivot, which ushered us into our current image-obsessed world. By casting vintage film cameras as hollow forms within a solid block of glass, I’m highlighting the technology’s lost physicality, the invisible magic of the craft-based photographic process, and the camera’s role in transmuting our visual perception of the world.
Josh Hershman 
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