48 | APRIL 7 • 2022 

time between personal projects and teach-
ing at the college level, has won many 
awards, written for artistic publications and 
appeared on the Netflix glassmaking series 
Blown Away. 
In West Bloomfield, he 
is showcasing two proj-
ects that depart from the 
intended use of functional 
glassware.
“Much of my work is 
in conversation with the 
history of science and the 
role of glass in measuring, 
encapsulating and observ-
ing the natural world,
” said 
Rosenberg, glass studio 
director at Wheaton Arts in 
New Jersey. 
“One object [on display] is called ‘looking 
glass,
’ a goblet-like object used to examine 
a distant landscape in miniature. The other, 
titled ‘orb,
’ comes from a design derived 
from an orrery, a mechanical model of the 
solar system.
”
Rosenberg, whose undergraduate studies 
were at the Rhode Island School of Design 

and whose graduate accomplishments 
were at the Massachusetts Institute of 
Technology, does not use molds. Instead, 
he prefers glass that is gathered out of a fur-
nace and shaped with hand tools. 
Josh Bernbaum develops 
more functional pieces.
“I’ve made drinking 
glasses since I started work-
ing with hot glass, and it’s 
kind of a touchstone for 
me,
” Bernbaum said. “
A 
lot of what I do involves 
techniques or processes in 
blown glass which allow 
me to explore the use and 
placement of various colors.
“I employ processes that 
allow different layers of 
coloration throughout the wall thickness of 
each piece.
” 
Bernbaum melts his own glass colors 
from scratch, which means he is mixing the 
raw materials together and melting them 
in a furnace instead of incorporating pre-
made glass colors. When the piece is cooled 
off, he carves through the exterior with 

diamond carving tools to reveal other layers 
of color.
“I have a pair of black goblets in the 
show,
” Bernbaum said. “Even though you 
can source black glass to incorporate, it is 
never going to be the same look as if you 
melt that black glass in a furnace and gather 
it out of the furnace when it’s in a molten 
state.
”
Bernbaum, who knew he wanted to 
be an artist in high school, entered the 
Massachusetts College of Art and Design 
in Boston thinking he would specialize in 
graphic or industrial design. That changed 
after he studied glassblowing.
Through early employment with a 
designer-builder of glassblowing equip-
ment, he learned techniques to construct 
his own equipment.
“The nice thing about making my 
own is that it’s all customized to me,
” said 
Bernbaum, whose wife, Marta, is a glass art-
ist specializing in jewelry. “I know how to 
fix pretty much everything I build.
”
Predominantly marketing through social 
media stands out as one approach the three 
artists have in common. 

Details 
Complementary glass 
exhibits will be on 
display through May 18 
by the Janice Charach 
Gallery at the Jewish 
Community Center 
in West Bloomfield. 
(248) 432-5579. 
Charachgallery.org.

ARTS&LIFE
ART

continued from page 47

According to the Coalition 
Against Childhood Cancer, 
the average cost of battling 
childhood cancer for just 
one family starts at $833,000, 
including medical costs and 
lost parental wages. 
 Northwestern Mutual, 
through its Foundation, is 
committed to making a dif-
ference in the lives of those 
children and their loved ones, 
including providing needed 
financial support. 
As part of these efforts, 
local Huntington Woods 
resident Shayna Lopatin has 
been recognized as one of the 
company’s 2021 Childhood 
Cancer Sibling Scholarship 
recipients.
Northwestern Mutual’s 
Childhood Cancer 
Scholarship Program was 

created in an effort to ease the 
financial burden on families 
affected by childhood cancer 
by helping to fund school tui-
tion and fees. This year’s pro-
gram marks the largest group 
of scholars to date, with 50 
students nationwide receiving 
a $5,000 renewable scholar-
ship (for a total of $10,000). 

When Shayna Lopatin was 
just 9 years old, her sister 
Cara was battling cancer. 
Because of the various can-
cer treatments, including 
inpatient chemo, six weeks 
of radiation and a stem cell 
transplant, Shayna’s sister and 
mother were gone for weeks 
at a time. 
Shayna found positivity 
through the kindness from 
friends and family who wrote 
letters, made sure her family 
had plenty to eat and helped 
with household chores. This 
inspired Shayna to support 
other families and children 
going through cancer by cre-
ating the Better by Letter Club 
where letters were written to 
those facing challenges. 
 Additionally, Shayna has 
completed three half-mara-

thons to raise money for Chai 
Lifeline, an organization that 
helps families with life-threat-
ening illnesses, and has partic-
ipated in panels discussing the 
impact of cancer on siblings. 
 Shayna is currently attend-
ing the University of Michigan 
to find a career based on her 
passions of communication, 
theater, social activism and 
politics.
“Helping siblings of those 
going through cancer has also 
helped me in processing what 
I went through,” said Shayna 
Lopatin. 
“I aspire to create and sup-
port organizations that pro-
vide sibling support. My sis-
ter’s cancer has given me the 
tools to support other families 
who are affected by childhood 
cancer.” 

Huntington Woods Student Wins Scholarship

Shayna Lopatin