Brilliant Color : Glass Innovation and Design

Explores a glassmaking color revolution and its creators, inspired by nature and chemistry

Between 1880 and 1930, glass designers and manufacturers created vibrant and striking colors inspired by nature, objects from rediscovered cultures, and hues of the new and popular synthetic textile dyes. Glass designers, many of whom identified themselves and studied as chemists, revolutionized the possibilities of glass and its colors through experimentation and endless creativity.

Brilliant Color: Innovations in Glass records an exhibition at the Corning Museum of Glass, with over 150 vibrant photographs of glass vessels, arranged in a sequence of hues. Included are works by and discussions of glass designers such as Frederick Carder, Émile Gallé, Joseph Locke, Leo Moser, Louis Comfort Tiffany, Arthur Nash, and Harry Northwood. An introductory essay contextualizes glass design and manufacturing in the age of the first World’s Fairs. Three more essays explore the popularization of colored glass, the new techniques and colors produced from scientific experiments, and how consumers incorporated these colorful wares into their home.

Amy McHugh is curator of modern glass at the Corning Museum of Glass. James Measell is historian at the Fenton Art Glass Company in Williamstown, West Virginia. Amy J. Hughes is assistant curator at the Corning Museum of Glass.