John Styler of Mt. Prospect, Illinois has begun an effort to get the U.S. Postal Service to issue a commemorative stamp of Frederick Carder. He needs each of us to engage in a letter writing campaign. Below is my weekend effort. I would ask each and everyone to send a letter. It doesn’t have to be long, or particularly eloquent. Just a show of support. Like so many things in government, the nose count is what is most important; more so than the content. So, write the post office, your congressman and consider the congressman for the district encompassing Corning.
Representative Eric Massa, 1208 Longworth House Office. Washington, DC 20515
Now, here’s mine.

Alan Shovers
1159 Harrelton Court
Evansville , IN 47714-0703
August 17, 2009

Terrence W. McCaffrey
Manager Stamp Development
United States Postal Service
1735 N. Lynn St ., Suite 5013
Arlington , VA 22209-6432

Dear Mr. McCaffrey:

I understand that Mr. John Styler of Prospect Heights , Illinois has made a proposal to you to feature a commemorative stamp recognizing the 150th birth year of Frederick Carder in 2013, the founder in 1903 of Steuben Glass. Mr. Styler has provided you considerable background on Frederick Carder and his accomplishments.

I would like to supplement that information with a focus on what I believe is likely the most continuously influential historic glass maker on the American scene. While he is not by name the best known historic glass maker, nonetheless his dramatic influence continues prominently on the entire studio art glass culture of today.

Most significantly he founded the Steuben Glass Works in 1903. More than 100 hundred years later Steuben Glass continues, without question, the most important and prominent art glass firm in the country to this day—without challenge.

Next, he perfected the cast glass method of producing art glass regularly used by many glass artists today. This is called the Cire Perdue or lost wax method.

Most importantly, after Frederick Carder ended his management of Steuben Glass in around 1933, he went to his small “retirement” office and built a small furnace for his use as he began what today we know as a “studio glass artist”. At the time art glass was created in factories and this was a new concept. The entire studio art glass movement is now popularized and is credited to Frederick Carder’s young neighbor, glass artist Harvey Littleton. However, it seems highly likely that since Mr. Littleton visited Mr. Carder in his studio that this is the kernel of grain that began the process.

Any student who begins their training as a glass artist at the Studio of The Corning Museum of Glass, perhaps the most important teaching facility in the nation, uses Mr. Carder’s glass as an significant influence to their studies. The Studio sits immediately next store to the Carder collection at the Corning Museum .

Finally, I would note that no other glass artist in the country has captured and commercially popularized as many periods of art in his career. All of Art Nouveau, Arts and Crafts, Victorian and Art Deco were mastered and were commercial successes during Mr. Carder’s 30 term running Steuben Glass. Compare this to L.C. Tiffany, the other great historical figure in art glass. Tiffany only succeeded in Art Nouveau style. As style has come and gone, Tiffany’s artistry has moved up and down with the public. Carder by contrast has always been in style. Why? Because, unlike many other art glass artists, Frederick Carder as a student of the classics, always kept to timeless designs as the base for his style adaptations. Even in the Art Nouveau period, a rather free flowing style, he has interpreted it within the confines of classic design.

Mr. McCaffrey, Frederick Carder has left us much–A timeless appreciation of beauty, craftsmanship, quality and design. Besides the specific results of his 8,000 designs and 150 colors he created, he has had a dominant influence on the glass artists of today and therefore his legacy lives on these almost 50 years since his death.
Sincerely,

Alan Shovers