Get excited and check the mail, because New Glass Review returns this month for its 43rd issue.
An annual exhibition-in-print, New Glass Review features 100 of the most timely, innovative projects in glass produced during the year. Artworks include sculptures, vessels, installations, and other works in glass by emerging and established artists.
A flagship publication of The Corning Museum of Glass since 1980, New Glass Review is a cyclical reintroduction into the world of contemporary glass and the artists who inhabit it; artists who continually push the boundaries of the material and the limits of their expression.
Following an open call for submissions that receives hundreds of entries every year from countries across the world, New Glass Review is curated by the Museum’s curator of postwar and contemporary glass and a changing panel of guest curators. While the search for the Museum’s next contemporary curator was underway this past summer, Samantha De Tillio was invited to lead the selection process. De Tillo was joined by Davin K. Ebanks, Kim Harty, and Kimberly Thomas.
De Tillio is a craft scholar, independent curator, and writer with over ten years of experience working in museums, with collections, and publishing. Her expertise includes American material and visual culture with an emphasis on post-war contemporary craft and glass. De Tillio is the contributing editor for Glass: The UrbanGlass Art Quarterly and was curator of collections at the Museum of Arts and Design in New York City until 2022. She is a 2023 winner of the American Craft Council’s Lois Moran Award for Craft Writing.
We spoke with De Tillio to learn more about her experience working on New Glass Review 43.
What was your experience with New Glass Review before now? Did it have any impact on your curatorial approach?
“I was familiar with New Glass Review (NGR) before taking on the role of guest curator and editor, having first learned of it in graduate school. I knew what to expect from it as a publication, but I don’t think this impacted my curatorial approach. That was primarily informed by my museum career and to that end NGR has served as a bellwether resource, illuminating the state of glass, and providing a window into the zeitgeist.”
What ambition/thoughts did you have coming into the project? Were they realized?
“I entered the project with an open mind. My base ambition was to enjoy the opportunity to combine my love of glass and publication making. That was certainly satisfied. Otherwise, I let the process and collaborations guide me.”
How would you describe the process that was used to make the selections?
“It was an organic process that developed directly from viewing the submissions, speaking with my fellow selectors, and learning from seasoned CMoG staff. I strive to follow my intuition in all things and after more than a decade of this work, it speaks fairly loudly. Practically speaking, juries can be laborious, with multiple reviews of thousands of images. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the unique “blind review” round that notoriously kicks off the jury process at CMoG. Basically, the process included multiple rounds of reviews, winnowing down the artworks through discussion and by following our guts.”
What did you see from this year’s entries?
“I saw a combination of artists who were well-known to me and some exciting makers I wasn’t aware of, which marks a successful jury experience for me.”
What can (or does) NGR do for emerging glass artists? And for established artists too?
“Getting into the pages of NGR is a boon for any artist, marking a symbolic arrival in the field. It puts their work before a wide audience, like networking in print. For emerging artists in particular, NGR is a great educational tool, allowing them to consider the scope and happenings in their field. Perhaps finding a mentor or muse within its pages. I add the caveat that NGR is comprised of its curators, so it is a particular lens, which is why the curator’s perspective essays and texts are such an important addition to the publication.”
What do you take away from this experience?
“I look forward to seeing the issue in print, where it will feel fresh a few months post-project. This new lens will provide insight for new research and writing ideas. In addition, I’m taking away the invigorating experience of working with my co-curators and the wonderful team at CMoG, an organization I’ve known for many years through Seminar, exhibitions, and the Rakow Research Library.”
Interested in being selected for New Glass Review 44? The call for entries is now open. Show us the groundbreaking ways you’ve used glass in the last year, and submit your work by January 3, 2024! Visit our website for more details.