November 6, 2007
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For more information, please contact:

Tina Lehman, SAMA-Johnstown Coordinator

(814) 269-7234

Travis Mearns, Public Relations Coordinator

(724) 238-6015

MUSEUM TO EXHIBIT STEUBEN GLASS COLLECTION

            Johnstown – The Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art at Johnstown is exhibiting its popular and impressive Nicholas Unkovic Steuben Glass Collection. The exhibition, featuring more than 80 crystal sculptures, opens November 16 and will remain on view through February 3, 2008.

            The crystal sculptures, produced from 1940 to 1980, represent an important non-utilitarian production known as “ornamental.” Intended as collector’s pieces, the diverse objects include animal sculptures, paperweights, scent bottles and goblets.

            “The Nicholas Unkovic Collection of Steuben Glass is a wonderful representation of the finest crystal sculpture produced in the United States in the middle of the 20^th century,” said SAMA-Johnstown Coordinator, Tina Lehman. “The focus of this particular exhibition is the wildlife crystal sculptures which clearly represent the creativity and talent of the designers and glassmakers of Steuben. Don’t miss the opportunity to come out and see our ‘glass menagerie.’”

            Nicholas Unkovic (1906-1983) and his wife, Mary Clark Unkovic (1909-1999) assembled the collection with great focus and dedication over a period of 30 years. Unkovic was a Pittsburgh lawyer who represented Steuben Glass. Impressed by the vision of Steuben president, Arthur A. Houghton, Jr., the Unkovics began collecting the crystal pieces around 1950. During his frequent visits to Steuben Glass in Corning, N.Y., Unkovic became familiar with the designers and glassblowers, and was always aware of new designs. The Unkovics specifically focused on collecting Steuben animals, relishing in the creativity that Steuben’s designers brought to the ever-expanding menagerie. The animal sculptures also were a source of delight to the couple’s five children and, later, their grandchildren. The acquisition of each new piece became a special occasion, and eventually the Unkovics began collecting earlier, historical pieces, among them a pouter pigeon by Sidney Waugh that predates the rest of the animals. In 1992, Mrs. Unkovic donated the breath-taking crystal collection to the Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art.

Steuben Glass Works

            Steuben Glass Works was founded in 1903 by English glassmaker Frederick Carder, who specialized in colorful Art Nouveau glass, and American Thomas G. Hawkes, President of T.G. Hawkes & Co., a glass engraving firm. Carder, captivated by the opportunity to serve as artistic director of the company, relocated to upstate New York, where he and Hawkes began a new glass design studio and glassworks and named the company Steuben, after the county in which it was located. Carder’s innovation and experimentation with glassmaking techniques produced several results, including iridescent surfaces (the well-known “Aurene” glass), murky translucence and saturated colors. In 1918, the Corning Glass Works acquired Steuben, maintaining Carder as Managing Director of the new “Steuben Division” of Corning Glass.

            In 1933, Houghton became Steuben’s new president, and quickly introduced to the market a new clear, pure glass developed by the company just the year before. This glass, named “10M” because of its extremely high refractive qualities, would be one of Steuben’s most significant technological advances. 10M glass is now known as Steuben crystal.

            This new glass was created by Corning researchers and had amazing brilliance, clarity and surface finish. Although some of Calder’s glass designs continued to be made, most of Steuben’s colored glass was phased out of production. In these early years of the company’s history, Steuben primarily made objects for the home, including stemware, urns, candlesticks, bowls and drinking glasses. Gazelle, Steuben’s first major engraved design, was introduced in 1935 and reflects the influences of Swedish simplicity and the massive geometry of Art Deco. The pattern also was significant because it was the first to utilize all of Steuben’s renowned glassmaking techniques: blowing, cutting, polishing and copper-wheel engraving.

            Over the years, Houghton continued to push the boundaries of creative expression, as shown through the partnership between the glass designer and glassmaker. Material, workmanship and design became the “Steuben Trilogy,” and Houghton wrote, “If any of the three elements is deficient, perfect glass can not be achieved.” Steuben is now considered among the most illustrious glass producers in the world.

            Designers represented in the Nicholas Unkovic Steuben Glass Collection include Lloyd Atkins, Katherine DeSousa, David Dowler, John Dreves, David Hills, James Houston, Donald Pollard, Paul Schulze, Susan Smyly, George Thomson, Sidney Waugh and Peter Yenawine.

            This exhibition coincides with the 25^th anniversary of the Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art at Johnstown. To celebrate the milestone, the Museum will host a cocktail reception from 5 to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, December 11. Cocktails and hors d’oeuvres will be served, and several past and present SAMA staff members will make brief remarks beginning at 6 p.m. Cost is $15 per person. Reservations are required by November 30, and can be made by calling the Museum at (814) 269-7234.

            The Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art at Johnstown is located in the Pasquerilla Performing Arts Center on the campus of the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown. Museum hours are 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. The Museum is a handicapped-accessible facility and is open to the public free of charge. For more information, call the Museum or visit www.sama-art.org.