NORFOLK, Va. — The Glass Art Society has announced the recipients of the 2017 Saxe Emerging Artists, including a native of Bradford, Pa.

One of the three internationally chosen artists is Gina Zetts, formerly of Bradford.

In 1980, Dorothy and the late George Saxe began collecting glass art. Over the course of their marriage, they built one of the most premier contemporary glass collections found in the United States. As collectors, the Saxes supported artists, galleries, institutions, and have played an immense role in elevating and increasing appreciation of glass art. At the 2015 GAS conference, the Glass Art Society (GAS) honored the Saxes with a tribute event which helped establish the Saxe Emerging Artists Lecture Fund, an endowment to support future generations of glass artists.

Over the years, GAS has selected and commended a number of emerging artists for their promising talent based on a rigorous, competitive jurying process. Applications of qualified individuals, who were nominated by professional academics and curators, were evaluated and deliberated over by 2017 jurors.

The 2017 Saxe Emerging Artists will present lectures on June 3 at the Norfolk Marriott Waterside Hotel Hampton Ballroom. The three artists will have the opportunity to introduce themselves and their work to a large audience of artists, academics, educators, collectors, critics and peers.

Zetts holds a bachelor of fine arts degree in sculpture from Alfred University and a master of fine arts degree in glass from the Rochester Institute of Technology. She was a recipient of Alfred University’s Purchase Award and winner of the Bronze Award in Bullseye Glass Co. Emerge 2014 International competition. Her work has been featured in two editions of New Glass Review and American Art Collector Magazine. She has worked as an instructor at RIT and Bullseye Glass Co. and presently is the administrative coordinator for the Oakland Museum of California. She and her husband live in El Sobrante, Calif.