Janice Chesnik (Born 1941) American, Signed Brass Kaleidoscope on Wood Stand. Janice Chesnik is a stained glass artist who devoted herself to making kaleidoscopes after first encountering them in the early 1980s. Together with her husband Ray and children Lori Riley and Sheryl Koch they continue to craft high-quality, innovative designs under the names Chesnik-Koch, Ltd. and Chesnik Kaleidoscopes out of their home workshop in Dawsonville, Georgia. This one is signed and dated 1982 near the turning mechanism. 

Condition: Commensurate with age. Some dents and rust. 

Size: 20 x 4 1/2 x 4 1/2 in. 

A kaleidoscope is an optical instrument with two or more reflecting surfaces (or mirrors) tilted to each other at an angle, so that one or more (parts of) objects on one end of these mirrors are shown as a symmetrical pattern when viewed from the other end, due to repeated reflection. These reflectors are usually enclosed in a tube, often containing on one end a cell with loose, colored pieces of glass or other transparent (and/or opaque) materials to be reflected into the viewed pattern. Rotation of the cell causes motion of the materials, resulting in an ever-changing view being presented. Although multiple reflection toys and tools have been in use since antiquity it was Scottish inventor David Brewster who coined the word “kaleidoscope,” derived from the Ancient Greek words for “beauty” and “to look,” in 1817 on his patent for a device.

Commensurate with age. Some dents and rust. 

All items are sold AS IS. Lot and condition details are for descriptive purposes only. Sarasota Estate Auction is not responsible for errors and/or omissions of condition. The absence of a condition report does not imply that the lot is perfect or free from wear, flaws, or characteristics of age. Please bid according to your own expertise, or request any additional information and/or photographs you deem necessary.