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An Unusual Charge: Conserving a Volta’s Straw Electroscope

As a conservator at a glass museum, most of the conservation treatments I do are on glass, but sometimes we are faced with other, less expected materials. One of the more unusual treatments I’ve done recently was repairing the straws (dried plant stalks) of an 18th century Volta’s Straw Electroscope – an object invented by Alessandro Volta, an Italian physicist, chemist, and inventor who was fascinated by electricity; interestingly the term “volt” was named in his honor.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, curiosity and experimentation around electrical phenomenon abounded. Instruments such as this one were invented to show and later measure electrostatic attraction and repulsion. When an electrically charged object (such as a balloon that has been rubbed on your hair) is moved near the conductive brass top of the instrument, electrons move freely between the top and the dangling straws, leaving both straws with either a positive or negative charge. Because each straw has the same charge, they repel each other and physically separate. Glass plays a critical role in this instrument not only because it allows us to see this separation, but also because its insulative properties make the phenomena possible by isolating the straws from the surrounding environment.

Virtual Journeys into the Collection: Giving and Receiving Good Will

This recurring blog series will feature virtual gallery walks with staff members from The Corning Museum of Glass. Everyone at our Museum interacts with the collection in different ways depending on the job they do and the perspective they bring. Hear from fascinating people and learn about their favorite objects as they provide a virtual peek at some of the treasures in our collection—and make plans to come see them in person when we reopen! This final entry in the series comes from Amy Schwartz, Director of The Studio

Over my 25 years in the Museum family as the Director of The Studio, I have been privileged to witness so many amazing artists make their mark.

In my virtual journey through The Corning Museum of Glass, I revisit friends and recall fond memories as I encounter each of these works of art again.

Coded in Glass: A Love That Dared Not Speak its Name

Queerness is as old as humanity itself. It might not have always been recognized as such, and it certainly has not always been accepted (and we still have a long way to go on that front), but communities of Queer folk have survived throughout history, despite the prejudices, fears, and insecurities of those who persecuted them.

Wineglass Commemorating “VRIENDSCHAP” (Friendship), Adams, L. (engraver) – 2018.3.8

A couple of years ago I was happy to acquire for the Museum a wine glass, made in the Netherlands around 1800–1816 and exquisitely decorated using the diamond-stipple technique with a scene celebrating friendship.

The diamond-stipple method involved using a diamond-point to tap a design in thousands of little dots into the glass. Effects of light and shade were created by varying the density of the dots. A little bit like an impressionist painting, but wonderfully delicate and ethereal.

I take my role as an educator very seriously. Although I am no longer a classroom teacher working directly with students, my role as the School Services Educator at The Corning Museum of Glass means I still reach nearly 10,000 students every single year. When I interpret art with those students, I want to hear their voices. All 10,000 of them.

In public and private schools, many Black and brown students are educated in a classroom that approaches learning from the point of view of the majority. Often, they are only taught to approach, interpret, and understand the world by someone with a very different lived experience from their own. Some students may feel as if their voices are not valued in school and their interpretation of the world is wrong because it is different from that of those in authority around them.

Museums are no different. Curator roles are predominately held by white people. When this happens, white voices in the museum are centered even when a piece of art is created by an artist of color. While interpretations by white curators are valuable, we can lose so much when we do not involve voices of color in our museum’s interpretation. When Black and brown voices in curatorial and interpretation are valued in a museum, our communities take notice and feel more welcome in that space.

New Glass Review 43: An Outside Perspective on the Best of Contemporary Glass

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.

Amy Schwartz & William Gudenrath Honored with 2023 James Renwick Alliance for Craft Award

The Studio’s Amy Schwartz and William (Bill) Gudenrath were honored on Saturday, May 6 in Washington DC with the James Renwick Alliance for Craft (JRA) Distinguished Craft Educator Award for excellence and innovation in education. The biennial award was celebrated at the JRA Spring Craft Weekend with a Symposium, Gala, and Awards Brunch. Recognized for their influence on future artists and significant contributions to American education in the craft field, Amy and Bill’s selection as honorees was the first time in the ceremony’s 20-year history that both makers and educators were honored at the same time.

William (Bill) Gudenrath and Amy Schwartz with their award at the Smithsonian Museum, Washington DC, May 6, 2023. Photo courtesy of the James Renwick Alliance.

Amy and Bill are the latest on a long list of distinguished honorees—the JRA Award has recognized some of the most influential craft artists in American history. This year, the other nominees included ceramic artist, social activist, and spoken word poet Roberto Lugo (the youngest artist to ever receive the Master of the Medium award); furniture maker Kristina Madsen; and curator, quilter, author, art historian, and aerospace engineer Carolyn Mazloomi.

CMoG Named One of the “7 Glass Wonders of the World”

Capping a truly momentous year for glass, The Corning Museum of Glass has achieved a new distinction: being named one of the “7 Glass Wonders of the World.”

The announcement was made during the closing festivities of the United Nations International Year of Glass (IYOG) 2022. The year officially concluded with a Conference and Ceremony at the University of Tokyo, Japan, on December 8-9, which was attended by our very own President and Executive Director Karol Wight. This event was followed by an official debriefing held at the United Nations headquarters in New York City on December 14.

Lino Tagliapietra in the Museum’s Amphitheater Hot Shop, May 13, 2022.

Lino Tagliapietra may be retiring, but not before one final visit to The Corning Museum of Glass. Last weekend was a monumental one for Lino, the glassblowers and staff at the Museum, and all the guests who filled the Amphitheater Hot Shop to see the Maestro at work during what will be his final performance in Corning.

To celebrate Lino’s enduring legacy, we asked those lucky enough to know and work with him, to describe the impact he has made on the glass world. To no surprise, the response was fervent and unanimous: Lino’s impact is, and will always be, extraordinary!