Ouroboros, the ancient Egyptian image of a serpent devouring its tail to sustain life, is thought to express the nature of the universe: An eternal cycle of renewal in which things never disappear but simply change form.

Glassblowers know that when glass is hot it can be manipulated into beautiful shapes and colors and that after it is cooled, it will retain its form and color for thousands of years.

Glass artist Geoff Lee's "Ouroboros Lidded Vessel," part of his exhibition of hand-blown glass "surface: color: form," draws inspiration from a number of sources.

"Without going too deeply into it ... the red rings I've used to decorate the surfaces of this new body of work brought to mind the image of the serpent ... and then I really like the symbolism attached to it," Lee said.

Lee, owner of Island Glassworks, in Kailua, has studied and worked with glass in Hawai'i, on the Mainland and in Italy. A growing interest in Korean culture and ceramics, as well as Japanese lacquer and Venetian glass forms have influenced his new work.

"surface: color: form" is just a way for me to describe the process of combining all these different influences," Lee said.

Reach Chris Oliver at coliver@honoluluadvertiser.com.