Many American studio glass artists turned to the traditional glassworking centers of Venice, central Europe, and Scandinavia for inspiration and knowledge. Lino Tagliapietra, the highly influential Italian maestro and teacher, provided a special glassblowing demonstration for the Museum's

Watch artists Ralph Mossman and Mary Mullaney of Heron Glass demonstrate at The Studio during the Annual Seminar on Glass. This demonstration shows the various stages of creating a Chevron bead, from the hot, blown glass component, through the lapidary steps required to finish.

The 2012 Rakow Commission honors the Danish artist Steffen Dam, a consummate glass craftsman, who will give an illustrated talk on his work. Although inspired by nature, Dam's work is entirely imaginary: the specimens he creates, in his words, are "plausible, but not from this world."