If its newest juried exhibition is anything to go by, Arts Benicia has a heart of glass. That is a compliment, as demonstrated by the creative ways artists from all over have chosen to incorporate glass. If you need proof, it can be seen in the exhibit “Cutting Edge— Nontraditional Glass,” which opens tomorrow in Arts Benicia’s gallery.

According to Celeste Smeland, the executive director of Arts Benicia, the idea to do a show centered around glass began with a conversation with Rob Jenkins, a member of Arts Benicia’s exhibition committee and a glass artist who has worked with other local greats in the medium such as Michael Nourot.

“He (Jenkins) talked about this idea of hot, cold, different kinds of glass,” Smeland said. “We liked the idea very much and kept honing it into where we said ‘Well, let’s do a nontraditional glass show.’”

Smeland said most exhibits are planned between a year and two years in advance. This exhibit was in the queue for three years.

“Given the deep history of glass in Benicia, it seemed a really important exhibition to hold here at Arts Benicia,” she said.

The exhibit is a collection of glass works by numerous artists in 13 states plus Mexico.

“(We have) a wide reach of artists exhibiting and also incredible breadth and depth as far as demonstrating what glass is capable of,” Lisa Jetonne Quintero, the exhibitions and programs manager, said.”

The works were selected by two jurors with long resumes. Carrie Lederer is the exhibitions curator at Bedford Gallery in Walnut Creek but has also worked with the Falkirk Cultural Center in Walnut Creek and the Oakland Museum Association and was a manager of Walnut Creek’s Public Art Program. Mary B. White has taught ceramics and glass arts at San Jose State University, Pilchuck Glass School in Stanwood, Wash.; the Corning Museum of Glass in New York, the Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts and The Crucible in Oakland.

The jurors also recruited guest artists Pam Morris, who works as a light and glass artist, and Clifford Rainey, a glass program chair at California College of the Arts who has created glass sculptures for decades. Rainey’s Napa studio was destroyed in the Atlas Fire in October, as were all of his glass pieces that were not in other collections. His installation at Arts Benicia is a collection of pieces and tools that were either charred or melted. Quintero described the installation as “a really moving accumulation of the debris from the fire.”

“He has to start fresh,” she said. “This is sort of the beginning of it.”

In addition to Rainey and Morris, the exhibit is a showcase for artists from all over. Some of them— such as Scott Zoog, Arthur Stern and Erika Von Zoog— reside in the Arsenal, but others come from as far away as Mexico, but they all use glass in a variety of ways. Some use castings, others combine it with other materials such as latex and clay. Others, like Carol Roseman and Weston Lambert, manipulate blown glass in such a way to resemble open packages or buzzsaws respectively.

“They disrupt the idea of glass being something that is transparent, moldable and decorative,” Quintero said. “I like conceptual art, and much of the show is conceptual art with a very traditional material.”

Quintero noted that of all art media, glass is often the hardest for newcomers to learn. Thus, the show features works by glass artists who range from students to professors.

“Anyone who’s an art student will gain something by taking a look at it,” she said.

Overall, Quintero hopes the show will renew an interest in Benicia’s glass history.

“It’s not a medium that a lot of young people are drawn to in part because it’s so difficult,” she said. “It requires a lot of patience, but maybe some people will come see the show and fall in love with the possibilities of glass because there’s so many things that can be done with it.”

“Cutting Edge” will run from July 21 to Aug. 26. An opening reception featuring some of the exhibiting artists from California will take place from 6 to 8 p.m. tomorrow at the Arts Benicia Gallery, located at 991 Tyler St. Suite 114. The gallery’s hours are noon to 5 p.m. Wednesdays through Sundays. For more information, call 747-0131, email info@artsbenicia.org or visit artsbenicia.org.