“I wanted to give Museum visitors a vocabulary with which to describe glass objects,” comments Halper.  “A person may have a strong reaction to a piece of art—either good or bad—but not know why.  By presenting contrasting pieces next to each other, visitors may better understand and describe what they see and articulate their likes and dislikes.  More importantly, I hope that they will be exhilarated, surprised and inspired.”

More than fifty objects are included in the exhibition’s nineteen groupings which will be arranged to emphasize both the history of glassmaking and the choices that artists make.  The contrast FLUID and RIGID, for example, is represented by a curly-headed blown vessel by Dale Chihuly displayed next to an angular cast sculpture by Stanislav Libenský and Jaroslava Brychtová.  Robbie Miller’s cast glass cinderblock, HEAVY as a brick, is paired with Susan Plum’s flame-worked lace-winged creature, LIGHT as a fly.  A Louis Comfort Tiffany leaded glass window with a SACRED biblical theme is placed alongside Frank Lloyd Wright’s SECULAR dining-room window depicting stylized sheaves of wheat.

One of the key contrasts in the exhibition is between DESIGNER and CREATOR.  This pairing is exemplified by two groups of goblets created by Dante Marioni.  The first set of goblets was designed by the artist for Steuben Glass but fabricated by a Steuben artisan; the second set was designed and blown by Marioni himself.  This pairing highlights one of the great shifts in the history of glass—from traditional factories to today’s artist-controlled studios.

Additional works included in the exhibition come from Rene Lalique, Venini Glassworks, Harvey Littleton, Walter Lieberman, Sonja Blomdahl, Ginny Ruffner, David Chatt, Sherry Markovitz, Jill Reynolds and Joey Kirkpatrick and Flora C. Mace, among others.

“Contrasts responds to comments from a number of our visitors who have expressed an interest in an exhibition that places glass within its historical framework while clearly illustrating the various design options available to artists, both past and present,” states Susan Warner, Director of Public Programs for the Museum.  “The exhibition provides a link to the Hot Shop and creates a foundation for understanding the content in our current and future exhibitions.”