Harvey K. Littleton (1922–2013)

Most glass experts consider Harvey Littleton the founder of the American studio glass movement. Littleton grew up with glassmaking because his father was director of research for the Corning Glass Works in Corning, New York. After he earned a master’s degree in ceramics from Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, Littleton taught ceramics […]

Dominick Labino (1910–1987)

Before collaborating with Harvey Littleton, Dominick Labino, a scientist and engineer, was the director of research at the Johns-Manville Fiber Glass Corporation. While learning how to create his own glass, he gave technical advice to Littleton and other studio glass artists. Labino’s recommendations about materials and equipment made new forms and styles possible. In 1965 […]

Frances (1912−2004) and Michael (1908−1999) Higgins

Frances and Michael Higgins met at the Chicago Institute of Design, where he was head of visual design. Frances first experimented with “bent” glass shapes in 1942. She placed flat pieces of glass on a mold and baked them in a high-heat kiln. After they married in 1948, they worked together to develop fused glass […]

Edris Eckhardt (1907−1998)

Cleveland artist Edris Eckhardt was famous for her work with ceramics, glass, and enameled metal. After graduating from the Cleveland Institute of Art in 1932, she set up her own studio. As an artist in the Public Works of Art program from 1933 to 1934, Eckhardt produced a number of small ceramic figurines from children’s […]

Dale Chihuly (1941–Present)

Seattle-area artist Dale Chihuly is the best-known of the late twentieth-century studio glassmakers. He graduated from the University of Washington in 1965 with a degree in architecture and later studied with Harvey Littleton at the University of Wisconsin. In 1971 he co-founded the Pilchuck Glass School near Seattle. Chihuly blew his early pieces himself. After […]