Club President, Scott Hansen of Stamford, CT, reports in from New York City:

In the last Gazette before Christmas, Alan and Susan Shovers shared their holiday photo from the Hotel del Coronado and used that West Coast location to segue to a description of Carder’s Thomas Edison plaque. Here’s my East Coast holiday photo from Rockefeller Center in New York City showing the center panel of the facade of the RCA Building.

Carder, Paul Gardner and four laborers produced a full scale model of this center panel and two side panels (not shown) from several tons of clay based on a small size model by architect Lee Lawrie. The panels are made of Pyrex glass. A more complete story of the RCA Building panels with additional photographs can be found in Gardner from pages 121 to 123.

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Shoe Size

Janet Ziffer of Columbia, Maryland answers the question about the shoe size of the glass slipper created by Mr. Carder:

In response to Shari Maxson Hopper’s question about the clear glass shoe size, I wear a ladies size 4 shoe. I measured several pairs where the heel height appeared to be similar to the pictured shoe, and they are approximately 7.5″ in length. However, I believe, from the one time I saw a shoe on display, that the width of the glass shoe was much narrower than current shoes, so perhaps they really were meant for a very dainty Cinderella. I don’t know if shoe sizes have changed over the years, as the period shoes I see in museums certainly all appear on the very small size.

Harvey Littleton Obituary

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Harvey Littleton is credited with creating the art glass Studio Art Movement in the 1950s. Mr. Littleton, as a child, was a neighbor of Mr. Carder in Corning, NY.

In 1932 when Mr. Carder was moved “upstairs” and out of managing Steuben Glass, he was given the title of Art Director for Corning Glass Works. Mr. Carder at this time was 69 and built a small “homemade” furnace in his new office at Corning Glass Works and became a studio art glass artist; well before the Studio Art movements creation was recognized. It is reported that in the 1950s Harvey Littleton visited Mr. Carder in his studio.

At any rate, during this period of 1932 to 1959 Mr. Carder did some of his most impressive creative work. This included the development of the cire perdue or lost wax method of casting glass. Also, he created Diatreta pieces (cage glass). In addition, during this period he produced architectural glass applications for Steuben, including the 55 foot by 15 foot RCA window shown above behind Scott Hansen. This window was cast out of Pyrex glass.