History of Well Spoken Art

I discovered my passion for stained glass during my freshman year in high school. Beverly Art Center, which was affiliated with my high school, offered an array of art courses. My mom encouraged me to explore stained glass. I grew to love the fragile austerity of the medium and the interesting ways in which metal, light, and glass combine to create a work of art.

When the recession hit, I witnessed the death of some of my favorite hangouts – cafés, bookstores, and mom-and-pop shops. I decided to use my stained glass panels to draw new customers into these establishments.

My favorite hangout was Tea Lounge in Park Slope. The café pulsed with writers, artists, and musicians, and I felt at home. I admired the stained glass panel installed over their entryway door. I hadn’t really seen artists design words into stained glass windows, and the image lingered in my mind.

After being commissioned to make the LOVE panel, I kept improving its design, and began making other panels like my NO WAR panel.

A colleague of mine asked me to make a panel that had his fiancée’s name written into glass. I found a niche in stained glass that I really enjoyed.

I began to sell them in cafés in Brooklyn and in Manhattan.

I sat in my living room looking at my work, and I thought to myself, “That art speaks to me. I made some well spoken art.” I decided to call this project WellSpokenArt.

Unfortunately, making stained glass panels is labor intensive, and it was impossible to make panels for everybody who wanted them. So I created a greeting card series featuring my art. I have not forgotten my original goal, which is to remind people of the importance of supporting local artists, musicians, and businesses. Where you spend your dollars matters. If you have a choice, Think Local First.

Finally, at WellSpokenArt, I am developing a program called, Your Success is Our Success. The recession that inspired my art still looms. Unemployment is higher than ever. Capital is hard to come by, as are jobs. Through this program, I help organizations to raise money for their causes, and I help people out of work to weather the recession. Our slogan is: Creating Art. Creating Community.

I stand by it, and I hope that it is contagious.

Sincerely,
Jason L. Outlaw
Founder