Steuben (glass)
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Steuben Glass is an American art glass manufacturer, founded in the summer of 1903 by
Frederick Carder Frederick Carder (September 18, 1863 – December 10, 1963) was a glassmaker, glass designer, and glass artist who was active in the glass industry in both England and the United States, notably for Stevens & Williams and Steuben, respective ...
and Thomas G. Hawkes in
Corning, New York Corning is a city in Steuben County, New York, United States, on the Chemung River. The population was 10,551 at the 2020 census. It is named for Erastus Corning, an Albany financier and railroad executive who was an investor in the company th ...
, which is in Steuben County, from which the company name was derived. Hawkes was the owner of the largest
cut glass Cut glass or cut-glass is a technique and a style of decorating glass. For some time the style has often been produced by other techniques such as the use of Molding (process), moulding, but the original technique of cutting glass on an abrasiv ...
firm then operating in Corning. Carder was an Englishman (born September 18, 1863) who had many years' experience designing glass for Stevens & Williams in England. Hawkes purchased the
glass blank A glass blank is a piece of glass that requires additional decoration before it is considered finished. Types of decoration include cutting, engraving, acid-etching, gilding, and enameling. Often the term blank is used in reference to an uncut pi ...
s for his cutting shop from many sources and eventually wanted to start a factory to make the blanks himself. Hawkes convinced Carder to come to Corning and manage such a factory. Carder, who had been passed over for promotion at Stevens and Williams, consented to do so. In 1918, Steuben was acquired by Corning Glass Works and became the Steuben Division. In July 2008, Steuben was sold by
Corning Incorporated Corning Incorporated is an American multinational technology company specializing in glass, ceramics, and related materials and technologies including advanced optics, primarily for industrial and scientific applications. The company was name ...
for an undisclosed price to
Schottenstein Stores Schottenstein Stores Corp., based in Columbus, Ohio, is a holding company for various ventures of the Schottenstein family. Jay Schottenstein and his sons Joey Schottenstein, Jonathan Schottenstein, and Jeffrey Schottenstein are the primary ho ...
, which also owns 51% of Retail Ventures, a holding company for DSW, Filene's Basement, and formerly Value City Department Stores; Value City Furniture, which changed its name to American Signature Furniture; 15% of American Eagle Outfitters, retail liquidator SB Capital Group, some 50 shopping centers, and 5 factories producing its shoes, furniture and crystal. On September 15, 2011, Schottenstein announced it was shutting down Steuben's Corning factory and Manhattan store, ending the company's 108-year history. Soon after, Corning Incorporated repurchased the Steuben brand. In early 2014, The
Corning Museum of Glass The Corning Museum of Glass is a museum in Corning (city), New York, Corning, New York, United States, dedicated to the art, history, and science of glass. It was founded in 1951 by Corning Incorporated, Corning Glass Works and currently has a ...
announced that it would work with independent contractors to reproduce Steuben using a new, lead-free formula and their classic leaded crystal.


Carder period (1903–1932)

Steuben Glass Works started operation in October 1903. Carder produced blanks for Hawkes and also began producing cut glass himself. Carder's great love was colored glass and had been instrumental in the reintroduction of colored glass while at Stevens and Williams. When Steuben's success at producing blanks for Hawkes became assured, Carder began to experiment with colored glass and continued experiments that were started in England. He soon perfected Gold Aurene which was similar to iridescent art glass that was being produced by Tiffany and others. Gold Aurene was followed by a wide range of colored art glass that eventually was produced in more than 7,000 shapes and 140 colors. Steuben Glass Works continued to produce glass of all sorts until
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
. At that time war time restrictions made it impossible for Steuben to acquire the materials needed to continue manufacture. The company was subsequently sold to
Corning Glass Works Corning Incorporated is an American multinational technology company specializing in glass, ceramics, and related materials and technologies including advanced optics, primarily for industrial and scientific applications. The company was name ...
and became the Steuben Division. Carder continued as Division manager without any real change in the company's operation except that he now had reporting responsibilities to Corning Glass Works' management. Corning's management tried, mostly unsuccessfully, to limit the articles that Steuben made to only the most popular. Production continued until about 1932. In 1932, there was a major change in Steuben management. The nationwide depression had limited the sale of Steuben and there was a lessening of public interest in colored glass. In February 1932, John MacKay was appointed to Carder's position. Carder became Art Director for Corning Glass Works. Steuben then produced primarily colorless art glass. Steuben still produced colored art glass, but mostly to fill special orders. A few new colors were added after Carder transitioned into his new role with Corning Glass Works, but the last known sale for colored art glass by Steuben was in 1943.


Houghton period (1933–2012)

Corning Glass Works appointed Arthur A. Houghton Jr. as President in 1933, and under his leadership Steuben changed artistic direction toward more modern forms. Using a newly formulated clear glass developed by Corning (referred to as 10M) which had a very high
refraction index In optics, the refractive index (or refraction index) of an optical medium is the ratio of the apparent speed of light in the air or vacuum to the speed in the medium. The refractive index determines how much the path of light Light, v ...
, Steuben designers developed beautiful, fluid designs. Pieces such as Gazelle Bowl, designed by
Sidney Waugh Sidney Waugh (January 17, 1904 – June 30, 1963) was an American sculptor known for his monuments, medals, etched and moulded glass, and architectural sculpture. Waugh was born in Amherst, Massachusetts. His father, Frank Waugh, was a land ...
incorporated
Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...
and
modernist Modernism was an early 20th-century movement in literature, visual arts, and music that emphasized experimentation, abstraction, and Subjectivity and objectivity (philosophy), subjective experience. Philosophy, politics, architecture, and soc ...
themes into glass. The themes during this period included "balustrade" designs for water goblets and candlesticks, footed bowls and serving pieces. Decorative forms included wildlife pieces representing owls, penguins and other birds in smooth stylistic forms. Some pieces, such as the Ram's Head Candy Dish, playfully included clean lines crowned by an ornate design (a ram's head, complete with a ruff) on the lid as an homage to its classic earlier pieces. The company also entered into the field of larger show and presentation pieces celebrating various scenes (such as its cut-away design featuring an Eskimo ice fisherman above the ice, and the fish below, or the Cathedral Window design) and elements that incorporated etchings. In some cases sterling silver or gold plating were used on metal finish elements such as the golden "fly" atop the nose of a rainbow trout. Each piece is signed simply with "Steuben" on the underside of the object. Toward the 1990s, the company also began production of small objects—"hand coolers"—in various animal shapes. Items from this period were also noted for their careful and elegant packaging. Before boxing, each Steuben piece was placed in a silver-gray flannel bag (stitched with the Steuben name), and then placed in a presentation box.


Designers

Many highly respected glass designers have worked for Steuben Glass, including: *
Kiki Smith Kiki Smith (born January 18, 1954) is a German-born American artist whose work has addressed the themes of sex, birth and regeneration. Her figurative work of the late 1980s and early 1990s confronted subjects such as AIDS, feminism, and gender ...
* James Carpenter *
Dan Dailey Daniel James Dailey Jr. (December 14, 1915 – October 16, 1978) was an American actor and dancer. He is best remembered for a series of popular musicals he made at 20th Century Fox such as '' Mother Wore Tights'' (1947). Biography Early life D ...
*
Michele Oka Doner Michele Oka Doner (born 1945, Miami Beach, Florida, United States) is an Americans, American artist and author who works in a variety of media including sculpture, prints, drawings, functional objects and video. She has also worked in costume a ...
* James Houston *Clain Johnson *
Beth Lipman Beth Lipman (born 1971, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is a contemporary artist working in glass. She is best known for her glass still-life compositions which reference the work of 16th- and 17th-century European painters. Biography Beth Lipman ...
*
Dante Marioni Dante Marioni (born March 3, 1964, in Mill Valley, California) is an American glass artist. Biography Dante Marioni grew up among many artistic influences. His father, Paul Marioni, was involved in the American studio glass movement and, as a ...
*
Keith McCarter Keith McCarter is a Scottish sculptor, with several works on public display. Career McCarter was born in Edinburgh in 1936 and studied at Edinburgh College of Art. He received an Andrew Grant Scholarship which allowed him to travel through ...
*
Massimo Vignelli Massimo Vignelli (; January 10, 1931 – May 27, 2014) was an Italian designer who worked in several areas, including packaging, housewares, furniture, public signage, and showroom design. He worked within the modernist tradition, emphasizing sim ...
*
Sidney Waugh Sidney Waugh (January 17, 1904 – June 30, 1963) was an American sculptor known for his monuments, medals, etched and moulded glass, and architectural sculpture. Waugh was born in Amherst, Massachusetts. His father, Frank Waugh, was a land ...
*
Albert Wein Albert W. Wein (1915–1991) was an American sculptor. Wein was born in New York City on July 27, 1915. His mother, Elsa Meher Wein was a portrait painter and it was through her that Wein was first introduced to art. He began his art studies at ...


Notable appearances

*Four Steuben pieces, including Gazelle Bowl, were added to the permanent collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1938. *Steuben was shown at "The World of Tomorrow" exhibition at the New York City World's Fair in 1939. *The Merry-Go-Round Bowl, Audubon Plates, and a pair of Steuben candlesticks were presented to
Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...
on the occasion of her wedding. The bowl and plates were presented by President and Mrs. Truman on behalf of the United States. Since then, and as of 2020, Steuben has been presented as a gift of state by every U.S. president. *Steuben was the only American glassworks to be included in L'Art Du Verre, an exhibition at the
Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...
Museum in Paris, where over 150 pieces of Steuben were shown. *The glass bowl in the
Merchant Ivory A merchant is a person who trades in goods produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Merchants have been known for as long as humans have engaged in trade and commerce. Merchants and merchant networks operated i ...
film ''
The Golden Bowl ''The Golden Bowl'' is a 1904 novel by Henry James. Set in England, this complex, intense study of marriage and adultery completes what some critics have called the "major phase" of James's career. ''The Golden Bowl'' explores the tangle of in ...
'' (2000) was designed by Eric Hilton at Steuben Glass. *Steuben glass bowl is mentioned as a wedding gift to the newly married
Charlotte York Charlotte York (later Charlotte York MacDougal and Charlotte York Goldenblatt) is a fictional character in the ''Sex and the City'' media franchise. She is one of the four central characters in the HBO television series ''Sex and the City'', its ...
-Macdougal in the 3rd season, episode 13 of
Sex and the City ''Sex and the City'' is an American romantic comedy, romantic comedy-drama television series created by Darren Star for HBO, based on Sex and the City (newspaper column), the newspaper column and 1996 book by Candace Bushnell. It premiered in th ...
. *
President Bartlet Josiah Edward "Jed" Bartlet is a fictional character from the American television serial drama ''The West Wing'' created by Aaron Sorkin and portrayed by actor Martin Sheen. The role earned Sheen a Golden Globe Award for Golden Globe Award for ...
broke a Steuben glass pitcher in ''
The West Wing ''The West Wing'' is an American political drama television series created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999, to May 14, 2006. The series is set primarily in the West Wing of the White House, where t ...
'' episode "He Shall From Time To Time...". *
Sterling Archer Sterling Malory Archer, almost exclusively referred to by his surname Archer, and sometimes referred to by his codename Duchess, is a fictional character and the titular protagonist of the American adult animated sitcom '' Archer''. Created by A ...
broke some Steuben glassware in episode ten, season one of ''
Archer Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In modern ...
''. *In "Christmas Bells", the Act 1 closer of ''
Rent Rent may refer to: Economics *Renting, an agreement where a payment is made for the temporary use of a good, service or property *Economic rent, any payment in excess of the cost of production *Rent-seeking, attempting to increase one's share of e ...
'', the ensemble commiserates over their lack of access to classic Christmas tidings, singing "No Steuben glass / No cappuccino maker /...No 'chestnuts roasting on an open fire'". *The glass slipper in the Cinderella Castle Suite at
Disney World The Walt Disney World Resort is an entertainment resort complex located about southwest of Orlando, Florida, United States. Opened on October 1, 1971, the resort is operated by Disney Experiences, a division of the Walt Disney Company. ...
is made by Steuben Glass. *A Steuben glass egg plays an important part in the movie ''
Risky Business ''Risky Business'' is a 1983 American coming-of-age teen comedy film written and directed by Paul Brickman (in his directorial debut) and starring Tom Cruise and Rebecca De Mornay. It follows the sexual exploits of high school senior Joel G ...
''. More than 20 years later, the egg is an important part of a plot of an episode of the television series ''
The O.C. ''The O.C. '' is an American teen drama television series created by Josh Schwartz that originally aired on Fox in the United States from August 5, 2003, to February 22, 2007, with a total of four seasons consisting of 92 episodes. The serie ...
''. *Steuben crystal appears a number of times in the apocalyptic novel
Lucifer's Hammer ''Lucifer's Hammer'' is a science fiction post-apocalypse-survival novel by American writers Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle that was first published in 1977. It was nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 1978. Two issues of a planned ...
by
Larry Niven Laurence van Cott Niven (; born April 30, 1938) is an American science fiction writer. His 1970 novel ''Ringworld'' won the Hugo Award for Best Novel, Hugo, Locus Award, Locus, Ditmar Award, Ditmar, and Nebula Award for Best Novel, Nebula award ...
and
Jerry Pournelle Jerry Eugene Pournelle (; August 7, 1933 – September 8, 2017) was an American scientist in the area of operations research and ergonomics, human factors research, a science fiction writer, essayist, journalist, and one of the first bloggers. ...
, where it serves as a metaphor for the fragile beauty of technological civilization. *Steuben glass is mentioned throughout Neil Simon's farce
Rumors A rumor (American English), or rumour (British English; American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, see spelling differences; derived from Latin 'noise'), is an unverified piece of information circulating among people, especial ...
, which debuted in 1988. *Six Steuben glasses were given to Rose Weismann in the 3rd season, episode 8, in the 2019 Amazon production of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. *In
Dominick Dunne Dominick John Dunne (October 29, 1925 – August 26, 2009) was an American writer, investigative journalist, and producer. He began his career in film and television as a producer of the pioneering gay film '' The Boys in the Band'' (1970) and a ...
's 1990 novel '' An Inconvenient Woman'', millionaire businessman Jules Mendelson instructs his mistress to request her interior decorator order a set of 72 drinking glasses from Steuben so she can "...serve me my drinks in some decent glasses".


See also

*
Carnival glass Carnival glass is moulded or pressed glass to which an iridescent surface shimmer has been applied. It has previously been referred to as aurora glass, dope glass, rainbow glass, taffeta glass, and disparagingly as 'poor man's Tiffany'. The name ...
was also manufactured by Corning *
Pressed glass Pressed glass (or pattern glass)
is a form of glass made by pressing molten glass into a Mol ...
was also manufactured by Corning


Notes


References

*The Glass of Frederick Carder - Paul V. Gardner (1971) *Steuben Forever-William Warmus (Glass magazine Winter 2000 Issue 81) *Frederick Carder and Steuben Glass - Thomas P. Dimitroff (1998) *A Guide to Colored Steuben Glass (Book 1) - Eric Erickson (1965) *A Guide to Colored Steuben Glass (Book 2) - Eric Erickson (1965) *Steuben Glass - James S. Plaut (1971) *Frederick Carder's Steuben Glass - Marshall Ketchum (2002) *Carder's Steuben Glass - John F. Hotchkiss (1964) *Steuben: Seventy Years of American Glassmaking - Perrot, Gardner, Plaut (1974) *Asian Artists in Crystal - Steuben Glass (1956) *Poetry in Crystal - Steuben Glass (1963) *The Art of Steuben - Steuben Glass (1972) *A Primer of Glass Design - Steuben Glass *Steuben Glass:An American Tradition in Crystal (first edition)--Mary Jean Madigan (1981) *Steuben Glass: An American Tradition in Crystal (Second Edition) - Mary Jean Madigan (2003) *Steuben Design: A Legacy of Light and Form—Mary Jean Madigan (2004)


External links

*
The Carder Steuben Club
{{Authority control Glassmaking companies of the United States Manufacturing companies based in New York (state) Steuben County, New York Corning, New York Corning Inc.