Tuesday, October 30, 2012

I’ve been traveling by ship in the Atlantic. First, to Canada, then on to Bermuda. A number have written to ask if I’m okay because of hurricane Sandy. Early on my ship line cancelled the Bermuda portion and opted to stay in Northern Canada (Prince Edward Island was added to our itinerary). Today we’re in Halifax. Tomorrow we head back to New York for a Friday arrival. Hopefully, by then all will be just fine.

Yesterday we were asked about a broken shelf of glass. Jane Spilman at CMoG supplies the answer.

Dear Alan,

I’m surprised at the story, The writer is correct that when the new museum building opened in May, 1980, the front door led to a ramp with a large glass circular sculpture by Dominick Labino on the left and another sculpture, by the Czech artists, Libinsky and Brychtova in the center of the space at the top of the ramp, where visitors were guided into the circular museum gallery which had the glass arranged chronologically in a series of galleries. At the time, there was very little Carder/Steuben on display because it was a very small part of the museum’s collection, and none of it was in the ramp area; nothing was except the Labino sculpture which is still there.

However, later that year, when we were re-installing the cases built into the wall in the ramp leading down to what is now the Heineman gallery, a shelf did break and several Carder pieces, including 2 Rouge Flambe vases, were broken. They were not “shattered”, and they have since been repaired and are on view in the Carder Gallery along with the Rockwell pieces. When we reorganized the galleries in 2001, and brought over the Rockwell’s collection on long-term loan, I installed a case of Carder glass in “Crystal City”, but there is no Rouge Flambe there; it’s all in the Carder Gallery adjacent to the Studio, where there is a shelf of Rouge Flambe, including the broken and repaired pieces.

We are very fortunate that in the 60 years of the museum’s existence, we’ve had very few accidents like that; in 1967, an elderly visitor lost her balance and fell into a case of European glass, shattering the cover glass and breaking several of the pieces inside. Fortunately, she was not hurt and the glasses could be repaired. After that, we changed the case covers to shatter-proof glass. The 1972 flood was the worst incident in terms of breakage, but the 1980 shelf breaking was the only accident like the 1967 one that I can recall.

Jane

Jane Shadel Spillman
Curator of American Glass
The Corning Museum of Glass
One Museum Way, Corning NY
Ph.607-438-5270

www.cardersteubenclub.org

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2013 Carder Steuben Club annual Symposium will be held at The Corning Museum of Glass in Corning, NY from September 19-21, 2013. The festivities will begin with Frederick Carder’s 150th birthday celebration on the evening of September 18, 2013.