We Went Looking for A Collection Of Carder Steuben

from John Lauderdale and Steve Levick of Ottawa, Canada

(l to r Alan Shovers, Susan Shovers, Steve Levick

A visit to the personal collection of Alan and Susan Shovers

While we were in the area of Evansville, Indiana visiting my (John Lauderdale’s) mother on her 90th birthday, we were kindly invited to Alan and Susan’s home to see their personal collection of Carder art glass. It was a wonderful experience. Not only because of the hospitality of the Shovers but also because of the beauty of their Carder treasures. Thank you again Susan for that delicious cheesecake. And thanks again for sharing their knowledge and experience on collecting, to beginners like us. We have attached a few pictures of their sensational displays.

I think one of things that makes the Shovers’ collection so eye-poping is the extraordinary way in which they have displayed their pieces. By designing the background and display bases for each piece while using several kinds of lighting, such as spots, LED strips and natural incident light, the art glass comes alive. It certainly was inspirational to us. Although we, ourselves, can never approach the quality and diversity of the Alan and Susan’s collection we can certainly endeavour to improve the presentation of what pieces we do have.

Our pictures were taken with an iPad which has no flash or other technical controls so please forgive the less than perfect images which is a shame since part of the message we wanted to convey was the excellent lighting. I wish everyone could see this beautiful collection. We thank Alan and Susan for sharing it with us.

J. Lauderdale and S. Levick

Steve Levick