EVENT: WheatonArts plans weekend “Summer Celebration” to honor 50th anniversary of art from glass

WheatonArts’ "Summer Celebration" commemorates the 50th Anniversary of Studio Glass, exploring glass art pieces and artists that both look back and look forward. photo: wheatonarts

In honor of the 50^th anniversary of Studio Glass, visitors to WheatonArts will be feasting on improvisational artwork and fine cuisine in an event being billed as “Summer Celebration: 50/Forward.” The action-packed three-day event set to take place at the end of June in Millville, New Jersey, promises glass demonstrations, presentations, and exhibitions exploring the spirit of innovation and strong teamwork that have defined a half-century of creative expression in glass. A special dinner celebration reserved for the invited artists and Wheaton-Arts high-level supporters will take place under the stars if weather permits on Saturday evening.

“We hope to present an exciting weekend of collaborative studio demonstrations by a multi-generational team of dynamic artists,” says Janet Peterson, the director of marketing at WheatonArts, in an e-mail correspondence with GLASS Quarterly Hot Sheet. “Both ‘first’ and ‘second’ generations of artists will work with a group of up-and-coming artists in the Glass Studio throughout the weekend. They include our new group of Creative Glass Center of America Fellows and our assistants and interns.”

The glass artists working in the studio during the “Celebration” include Paul Marioni, Dick Marquis, Paul Stankard, Hank Adams, Tina Aufiero, Deborah Czeresko, Stephen Paul Day, Jim Harmon, Pike Powers, and Mark Zirpel. The precise times these artists will give their respective demonstrations have yet to be determined.

Three exhibitions will be on display and open for viewing over the long weekend: Pioneers of American Studio Glass: Edris Eckhardt, “Maurice Heaton, Frances and Michael Higgins,” containing works from Museum of American Glass, and “Celebrating 50 Years: American Studio Glass,” with selected works from the Museum of American Glass; and The Fire Continues, an American Studio Glass Artists invitational exhibition.

The exact schedule is still being determined, but among the event line-up is a presentation of a film on Saturday entitled Toledo Workshop Revisited, hosted by Robert Minkoff, managing trustee of the Robert M. Minkoff Foundation. Sunday’s itinerary includes an artist roundtable to discuss what took place during the preceding two days of experimentation, which will be moderated by Andrew Page, the editor of the GLASS Quarterly Hot Sheet blog as well as the magazine GLASS: The UrbanGlass Art Quarterly.

This celebratory event will take place this June 29^th, 30^th, and July 1^st.

— Anna Tatelman