TACOMA, WA :: The Museum of Glass is among several recent projects that are revitalizing downtown Tacoma. It is situated across from the new Washington State History Museum and the University of Washington’s branch campus. Tacoma’s other icons, old and new, can be seen from the museum’s surrounding terraces and plazas, including the Tacoma Dome, the renovated Union Station, the light rail train, and the cable-stayed bridge spanning over the ports of Commencement Bay. Not too long ago, this area was derelict and unsafe. Now, it’s a hub of education and culture, with new condos and businesses taking root.
Kristie and I watched a team of glassblowers craft a vase in the museum’s Hot Shop – an exciting studio enclosed in the building’s prominent steel cone. It serves as a striking architectural element and an enormous chimney, exhausting the hot air produced by the kilns blazing at 2400 degrees Fahrenheit. As the glassblowing team works, a person equipped with a headset describes what they are doing, while another person in a control room operates a series of cameras to zoom in on the action and project it on a large screen. It’s an impressive setup and show, with seating for about 100 visitors.
It must be flattering for these artists to have spectators watch them work. I can’t imagine people ever paying to see me design website buttons.
The exhibits are what you expect, with hundreds of pieces in a variety of imaginative forms, colors and patterns. Surprisingly, it’s not all glass and it’s not all Chihuly, although he does have an impressive display outside of the museum called the Venetian Wall. It is along a pedestrian bridge and is filled with dozens of his pieces backlit by the sun. At the end of the bridge are a pair of glass towers, resembling gigantic sticks of blue rock candy. Just beyond the bridge is the Union Station Federal Courthouse, which houses several more of his seaforms and impressive chandeliers.
Go visit this museum, but be sure they have a team in the Hot Shop when you go – it’s the best part! Also, if you want to take pictures, be prepared to sneak your camera inside – they’re not allowed and the security guards will be strict to enforce the rules if you’re caught!
Kristie and I watched a team of glassblowers craft a vase in the museum’s Hot Shop – an exciting studio enclosed in the building’s prominent steel cone. It serves as a striking architectural element and an enormous chimney, exhausting the hot air produced by the kilns blazing at 2400 degrees Fahrenheit. As the glassblowing team works, a person equipped with a headset describes what they are doing, while another person in a control room operates a series of cameras to zoom in on the action and project it on a large screen. It’s an impressive setup and show, with seating for about 100 visitors.
It must be flattering for these artists to have spectators watch them work. I can’t imagine people ever paying to see me design website buttons.
The exhibits are what you expect, with hundreds of pieces in a variety of imaginative forms, colors and patterns. Surprisingly, it’s not all glass and it’s not all Chihuly, although he does have an impressive display outside of the museum called the Venetian Wall. It is along a pedestrian bridge and is filled with dozens of his pieces backlit by the sun. At the end of the bridge are a pair of glass towers, resembling gigantic sticks of blue rock candy. Just beyond the bridge is the Union Station Federal Courthouse, which houses several more of his seaforms and impressive chandeliers.
Go visit this museum, but be sure they have a team in the Hot Shop when you go – it’s the best part! Also, if you want to take pictures, be prepared to sneak your camera inside – they’re not allowed and the security guards will be strict to enforce the rules if you’re caught!
