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| mayra carrá: her own perspective
We often mull over that magical moment when we first discovered the path to Beauty. I can think of my encounter with glass in
no other way.
My fingers have found themselves handling wood, stones, metals, paintbrushes and any element capable of being shaped by an
inborn obsession with finding an expressive language through which to transmute my ideas into objects.
In 1974, while studying architecture, provoked by an almost morbid curiosity to handle such a fragile yet dangerous material as glass, I found work as an apprentice in a glazier's workshop.
Looking back, I still thrill at the surprise I felt upon discovering not only the material itself but the whole world which surrounded it: a magical world with its own rituals, its language and a passionate history which began in the romanic Christian Church before
drawing us into th e infinite mediaeval mysteries of how to harness light, the symbol of divine power, through stained-glass.
All this was wonderful. The coldest atmosphere could be transformed with a skylight made of greens, yellows and turquoises. A a sense of majesty could be bestowed upon a living room by colouring the light with cobalt
blues and aquamarines, a kindergarten filled with joy by means of red and yellow butterflies.
The challenge was tempting… How could one resist the creative urge that each of these visions provoked? On its way through the stained-glass,light could be transformed by the images and colours which the artist had determined, in an almost magical encounter between the ethereal and the wordly. A meeting of light and matter in the continually changing scenery provided by the surrounding architecture.
Glass: Fragile, hard. Cold, warm. Translucent, transparent…
A thousand adjectives to define the duality of this material which makes use of light to convey feelings, to awaken emotions.
This material has awoken in me such a fascination that I can’t help but see it with the eyes of a child, a child who gazes at his favourite plaything in search of its most intimate secrets.
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curriculum vitae
Mayra Carrá was born in Mendoza, Argentina, on October 16th 1945.
From a very early age and alongside her academic studies, she took up painting, participating (and earning several distinctions) in art competitions.
By early 1965 she found a well-defined pictoric style which
explored new ways of visual expression through geometric
constructivism using simple two-dimensional lines, which later would evolve into three-dimensional images charged with symbolism.
An innate sense of curiosity drew her to experiment with other artistic media: ceramics, photography, jewellery and enamel-work. But it was in 1974, whilst studying architecture that she discovered the beauty of stained-glass windows, whereupon she joined a craftsman glazier's workshop as apprentice. This first contact with glass would be decisive in her artistic and personal career.
In 1978 she left her native country to settle in Spain. In 1983 she opened her glass gallery-workshop in Palma de Mallorca, where since then she has dedicated herself exclusively to the design and construction of stained-glass windows and glass sculpture.
She has frequently been interviewed in the media, been appointed member of several private and public institutions, written
specialised articles in different publications and exhibited her works in individual and collective art shows.
She has studied at the following institutions:
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Escuela Superior de Artes Plásticas of the University of
Mendoza, Argentina. |
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Escuela Superior de Artes Plásticas de Puerto Rico. |
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Foundation Rogers. New York. |
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Escuela Massana. Barcelona. |
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Facultad de Arquitectura y Urbanismo. University of Mendoza,
Argentina. |
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Glass School. La Granja de San Ildefonso. Segovia. Spain. |
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action philosophy
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what appears to be straight
is still curved.
The greatest ability,
is still ineptitude.
The highest perfection
is still full of defects.
The path to acquire it,
is unending.
LAO TSE
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Since the Romanic period, the light which penetrates a stained-
glass window has been used by artists, interior designers and architects as a natural llumination system, with enormous aesthetic possibilities for creating atmospheres in interiors.
 The beauty spread out by the
coloured light of artistic stained-glass not only awakens feelings of pleasure from those enjoying it, but also reflects upon their personality and good taste.
Since 1983, in my workshop in Palma de Mallorca we dedicate ourselves exclusively to the design and construction of
windows, skylights, standing
lamps and wall lamps, with high quality artistic glass and with three premises which set us apart from the rest:
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• exclusive designs
We don't sell by catalogue. In our workshop every piece is designed individually taking into account its final placement. The design process takes into consideration the illumination, architecture, wall and floor décor, so that the finished piece will fit harmoniously into its surroundings.
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• innovative techniques
Since stained-glass windows were first created a thousand years ago, the technique used in their construction was known as
"leading" because of the strips of lead which joined the pieces of coloured glass together.
Contemporary techniques have not only created new tools and
qualities of glass but have also given us innovative ways of assembly which allow for new forms of artistic expression. One of these, the RESIN TECHNIQUE, is our speciality.
Black resin is a product specially created as a substitute for
lead in windows, and among its most notable properties, we can underline the following:
a) durablity
Being inalterable under the most extreme changes in weather,
black resin joints are unaffected by the conditions which cause
lead strips to eventually lose their water-resistance and to "loosen their grip" on the glass.
b) larger sizes
 Using resin to join the pieces of glass allows for a much more rigid structure, thus permitting the construction of much larger pieces than those based on lead strips and with no
need for extra support.
c) aesthetic results
Experience has led us to use this method not only for its technical advantages but also because visually, the use of black resin in combination with a refined sense of design produces pieces of high quality and aesthetic beauty.
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• hand-crafted work
Since 1980 we have been making works of stained-glass in the age-old tradition of the ancient masters, so that the resulting pieces combine their exclusive design with craftsmanship of the highest  quality.
Since 1991 the mayra carrá vidrieras artísticas has been recognised as a CRAFT COMPANY by the
Balearic Government's Commerce and Industry Council, awarding Mayra Carrá the title of Master Crafstman in Artistic Glass.
In 1999 the IDI (Balearic Industrial Development Institute)
award ed our pieces the symbol which distinguishes them as Quality Products of the Balearic Isles.
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| from the press
Belén Alonso
(AZUL. the Trasmediterranea Magazine - Madrid, august 1995)
"...It is Mayra Carrá's restlessness as an artist that has marked her professional career. She is heir to an entire artistic tradition which developed around the glazier's craft. And from the moment she discovered the virtues of this material, she hasn't tired of
playing the fragile and delicate game of colouring light..."
"...her latest glass sculptures can only be described as shapes of
light made into tangible objects."
Joan Mascaró Pasarius
(BALEARES - Palma, march 14th 1994)
"...her stained-glass work: pure imagination, monastic seclusion, cathedral-like solemnity..."
Elena Ballestero
( ILLESPRESS weekly – Palma, december 1998)
"...caught between painting and poetry, Mayra Carrá shows us how to understand art on her own terms. Light emerges from her
stained-glass work and from the heart of her sculptures, creating timeless moments.
Colours and forms which belie the fragility of glass, showing us all the strength and richness which she has bestowed upon it."
"...years of experimentation in working with light has made Carrá unique as an artist, capable of bringing forth a brilliant and majestic sculpture out of fragile glass."
Eduardo Santos
( ULTIMA HORA - Palma, december 8th 1995)
"...after analysing her extensive output, we can conclude that each of her pieces are authentic works of art in which light has an important role to play."
Humbert Colom
(BRISAS Magazine - Palma, January 2nd, 1994)
"...quite apart from the question of colour and design, her stained-glass windows transmit a whole array of sensations capable of emotionally overwhelming the viewer."
"...when it comes to piecing together colours and glass, those in the know say that she is second to none."
Rosanna Rezusta
(CASA & CAMPO Magazine - Nº 46 - Madrid, 1998)
"...Mayra Carrá's artistic body of work also includes glass
sculptures...inspired by geometric designs, she works them into evocative, sensual figures, full of changing colours and movement which seems to spring from within."
V.E.G.
(DIARIO DE MALLORCA - Palma, May 26 th 1995)
"...Mayra Carrá conceives her stained-glass pieces as one-off works of art, made to measure and designed to harmonise with the settings in which they are to be placed."
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