Distance Learning: Walter Lieberman’s Museum of Glass lecture series to be streamed live via the Internet

A photo of glass painter and lecturer Walter Lieberman from his Facebook page.

Starting on February 6th, and continuing every one-to-two weeks through May 15th, the Museum of Glass in Tacoma, Washington, will broadcast live a Sunday-afternoon lecture series on the history of glass art by glass painter Walter Lieberman, who has been delivering a series of history talks at the museum since 2006. Each lecture will run 45 minutes and include slides of stand-out work from each time period, which starts with Ancient Roman glass and ends with the Studio Glass movement. The lectures will be followed by live glassmaking demonstrations by the Museum of Glass hotshop team, who will use period techniques to make work in the style of the era covered in the lecture. Lieberman will be on hand during these demos to narrate and answer any audience questions.

With only 45 minutes to cover vast areas of history, it is unlikely each of these lectures will be more than a quick overview, though there will be additional time to explore an era with the hotshop demonstration that follows. Still, the series promises to be a great introduction to the vast array of styles and historic periods for glass as a decorative, functional, or sculptural medium.

“There is an emphasis in the lectures about the societal forces which shapes the glass making,” Lieberman told the Hot Sheet in an emailed response to questions. “Those might be scientific, religious, political, or artistic.”

Lieberman interacts with the audience at the Museum of Glass while doing "the bubble trick." photo: ken emly

A complete schedule of the Sunday lecture series can be found online. Tune into the Museum of Glass live streaming feed during a scheduled lecture and demo (which runs from 2 – 5 PM Pacific Standard Time) to watch online. Here is a list of the dates and topics.

February 6th: The Glass of Rome

February 20th: The History of Venetian Glass

March 6th: The History of Stained Glass

March 13th: Nineteenth-Century Glass

April 3rd: Art Nouveau Glass

April 10th: Art Deco Glass

May 1st: Scandinavian Glass

May 15th: The History of Studio Glass