The World Wide Panorama

Introduction

The theme for the 2nd quarter of 2017 is “Glass”, continuing the overarching idea of a Year of Building Materials for 2017.

Theme Essay: Glass

The essay conveys the team’s idea of the event. It is usually published together with the Theme announcement and offers a starting point for the contributing photographers.

“Glass” – it’s everywhere, in one shape or another. Silicon dioxide is the sand on beaches, the glassware on the table, the windows on buildings, its many uses ranging from utilitarian to objet d’art. Mirrors and lenses, colored or clear, huge panes and small vials … Glass is a kindred theme to our 2017 opener “Concrete”, continuing our Year of Building Materials.

In regard to building materials, glass is just as ubiquitous as concrete, yet it can take many forms: rather mundane ones as windows, or as a material for art. From hand-crafted items and stained glass windows to large-scale industrial production and skyscrapers, glass covers a wide range of use cases. It also has a long history, which should make for interesting and diverse takes on this theme.

For more information, this Wikipedia article is a good starting point: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_glass