Rendering of The Corning Museum of Glass’ GlassBarge, a mobile glassmaking studio. (Corning Museum of Glass; McLaren Engineering Group)
One hundred and fifty years ago, the Brooklyn Flint Glass Company relocated its industrial glassblowing equipment via New York’s waterways to a new home in Corning. That 1868 trip along the Hudson River and the state’s canal systems began the evolution of the company now known as Corning International.
The Corning Museum of Glass celebrates that pivotal journey as GlassBarge, a mobile studio on a canal barge fitted with all-electric glassmaking equipment, retraces the historic Brooklyn-to-Corning route. View a fascinating hot-glass demonstration at the barge’s docking spot on the Brooklyn waterfront.
Since its waterways tour coincides with the Erie Canal’s Bicentennial as well as the centennial of the commemoration of New York State’s Barge Canal, GlassBarge is accompanied on the journey by the Lois McClure, a replica of an 1862 barge. A visit on board offers insights into 19th-century canal life and the role that barges played in the growth of commerce and the glassmaking industry.
A stop at UrbanGlass—a vibrant collection of instructional and professional working studios and galley spaces—provides a glimpse of Brooklyn’s contemporary connection to the art and industry of glassmaking. See artist-led demonstrations of neon work and glassblowing; view a current exhibition (and preview an upcoming one); and browse a shop featuring handmade objects by artists and designers, many of whom create in UrbanGlass’s studios.
Museum education consultant Sheila Pinsker serves as the tour’s leader.
Enjoy a boxed lunch en route, and dinner before departure at Deniz Turkish Mediterranean Cuisine in the heart of Brooklyn.
Fringe stop at about 7:10 a.m.
Other Connections
Take a look at the Corning Museum’s GlassBarge in action as it travels New York’s highway of canals.
