Launched in 2011, GLASSTASTIC 2023 brings together children in grades K–6 who submit drawings and descriptions of imaginary creatures and glass artists who turn those drawings into fabulous three-dimensional sculptures. This year, we received over 500 drawings. Eleven glass artists pored over them, each with the difficult task of choosing just one to transform into glass. The resulting exhibition reflects and celebrates the creativity and imagination of the children who participated and the ingenuity of the artists who faithfully rendered each creature’s distinguishing features in glass.

New this year, we have placed the creatures in an immersive habitat designed by local artist Cynthia Parker-Houghton.

Bringing the GLASSTASTIC menagerie to life requires the glass artists to experiment with processes, materials, and a variety of glass-working techniques. In some cases, molten glass was gathered on the end of a hollow pipe, rolled, stretched, and given form with the artist’s breath. For flame-worked sculptures, brightly colored rods of glass were heated with a torch and manipulated to create intricate details.

The imaginative young artists whose creatures have been turned into glass are Phoebe Benik, Elliot Esposito, Jorja Hill, Quinn Hobbie, Taelyn Jennings, Cori Kelly, Sylvan Koicuba, Leo Neeper, Willow Ngoma, Esme Sagarena-Harlan, and Isolde Tierney. The ingenious and generous glass artists are Josh Bernbaum, Marta Bernbaum, Jocelyn Brown, Bob Burch, Allie Dercoli, Robert DuGrenier, Zak Grace, Jordana Korsen, Sally Prasch, Randi Solin, and Jen Violette. We congratulate and thank them all!

— Kirsten Martsi and Sarah Freeman, co-curators

Glasstastic 2023 is supported in part by gifts from Elizabeth Catlin and Jared Flynn, Janet Hertzberg, Martha LoMonaco and Karl Ruling, Mel Martin and Pat Howell, Leo Schiff and Joy Hammond, and Carolyn Thall and Aidan Finnan.

An online gallery of every creature/drawing received is available here. 

Click here to view selections from the 2011, 2013, 2017, 2019, and 2021 versions of GLASSTASTIC.