Local glass sculptor Alan Binstock is having the kind of year we all dream about – his first museum show at the Katzen Center at American University in ongoing, gallery shows at the new Gallery 555 in downtown DC, doubtless more goodies showering down. Binstock is to be commended for taking the opportunity provided by being given the whole sculpture garden at the Katzen to move decisively into new territory with work that is a giant step up in scale and complexity.

Not that the outdoor space at the Katzen is entirely un-problematic. On the contrary, the large, wide-open expanse of concrete, hemmed in by very high walls, also concrete, is generally cold, hard and undifferentiated. It has defeated the efforts of some of Alan’s predecessors to incorporate it into the artwork. By simply accepting the challenge to go big and essentially disregarding the nature of the space itself, Binstock has made a wise decision.

The exhibit is called “Way Stations”, referring to the places where a traveler stops to rest and reflect during the course of a journey. The metaphor is pretty obvious but apt, nonetheless.  Binstock, an architect and a yogi, works at NASA and has long been fascinated by the imagery of intergalactic travel. These works, though, speak to me more of a love for the materials themselves, for the clarity and light of the glass and the strength of the steel. The exception, perhaps, is one of my favorites, “Wayfinder,” which calls to mind an ancient contraption for viewing the night sky. In Wayfinder, the metalwork is more than a construction element, it is an important part of the piece itself.

Some of the large works are made of pieces of broken colored glass and resin molded to steel armatures in arc shapes, forming constructions that the viewer can walk through. In others, a large gorgeous glass doughnut has been fashioned and hung on steel bars. The star of the show is probably “Chapel,” a small building of shimmering glass that contains a mysterious vessel on a pedestal. It invites the viewer to enter mindfully, while making her aware of the fragility and other-worldliness of the place.

I don't want to end without a shout-out to the Katzen for showing local artists, in most cases giving them their first museum show. Most of the other "major" institutions in town are focussed virtually entirely on the national and international level, competing to exhibit artists already well known. The Katzen is pretty much the only museum venue that regularly casts it gaze on what it is in its own back yard.