Glass

Glass Studies provides an environment that promotes the growth and nurturing of young Artists, Designers, and Artisans. Students are challenged on a daily basis to apply themselves to the creation and completion of images/objects that identify and utilize the singularly unique qualities of the material glass.

BFA

A concentration in Glass in the BFA program involves committing a large block of time to the development of a clear personal vision, a sense of intention, and a basic facility in a wide range of material manipulation techniques. The Glass Program stresses excellence in the individual strengths of young Artists, Designers, and Crafts people. As a rule, we respect encourage the old adage of learning by doing, and more often than not, learning experientially through what could be categorized as failure! The main philosophical thrust of the undergraduate area of study can be said to be, “never underestimate the value of editing!” Students are challenged to be prolific in their experiments and must learn to be their own harshest critics. Our highest goal is to encourage the development of an intellectual and emotional fearlessness in the individual’s investigation into the expressive range of material.

MFA

The MFA in Fine Art with a concentration in Glass program demands a minimum of two years of intensive studio work, during which time students are expected to demonstrate a serious dedication to their studio practice through steadfast perseverance, and a constant maintenance of their individual focus. The students are (as a highest ideal) expected to identify aspects of the material that lead them to intellectually, and emotionally fearless art making. The visual vocabularies of all members of the graduate studies program in glass will be extensively supplemented through personally directed in depth research, across a wide swath of disciplines. In the end each graduate course of concentrated study is individually developed, individually tailored, as well as self-driven, where within each student will work closely with a committee of professional faculty members, all of his or her choosing. The end point of study will be the presentation of a culminating solo masters exhibition that showcases the original research undertaken and completed over the two year period.

Facilities

The Glass facilities consist of two large main classrooms housing workspace for kiln casting and lampworking facilities, a hot glass shop, cold working lab, and graduate studios.

The Glass Program is a 5000 sq ft facility that includes a Hot Shop equipped with:

  • a 500 lb Spiral Arts tank furnace
  • 28” x 40” large Spiral Arts glory hole
  • 20” x 30” medium Spiral Arts glory hole
  • pipe warmer and cooler garage
  • 54” x 36” x 26” top loader
  • 54” x 26” x 24” front loader
  • four 26” x 20” x 16” front loaders
  • one 4’ x 6’ x 2’ top loader
  • GB4 controller
  • and a color box

The Cold Shop is equipped with:

  • a diamond lap wheel
  • grit lap wheel
  • diamond band saw
  • 106” x 4” belt sander
  • glass lathe with diamond and felt wheels
  • and a 10” circular saw

The kiln room has two 36” x 30” x 12” Denver fusing kilns with West controllers, and two Paragon kilns (the largest being 44” x 22” x 16”)

There Lampworking studio equipped with 8 Carlisle CC burners and 5 Carlisle mini CC burners.

The Glass Program has five graduate studios each approximately 10.5’ x 8’.