The Brunnier Art Museum features a new exhibit this semester titled “Mythical Bounty: Glass Sculpture.” The artist, Amber Cowan, used salvaged press glass objects from American glass manufacturers to create a variety of intricate glass sculptures.

“The Dreams of a Descendant Sireneuse” is the center of this collection. This piece features a large shell pink bowl with a nude figure standing at the front.

“I became fascinated with this glass piece, which is an antique from The Cambridge Glass Factory made in the late 1930s,” Cowan said. “I believe it to be one of the most unique pieces of pressed glass ever created.”

Cowan tells a story of the townspeople near The Cambridge Glass Factory and their fondness for a circus trapeze artist that had come to the area. They named the vase the “Flying Lady” bowl after her. The full nude sculpture was seen as risqué and was hidden in the cellar if the priest or family came to visit.

“The Dreams of a Descendant Sireneuse” was commissioned for the University Museums and is now a permanent piece in the Brunnier Art Museum.

The rest of the exhibit features an array of glass figures, dishes and colors arranged to display the discarded glass in a new light. 

Cowan has been fascinated by glass since she was a child. She began working with the material during her undergraduate studies at Salisbury University and eventually got her master’s of fine arts at the Tyler School of Art and Architecture in Philadelphia. 

“Glass is incredibly challenging and unforgiving. It is always keeping me on my toes, and I am never bored,” Cowan said. “Even if you think you have mastered a technique, there is always something new to learn.”

In addition to this exhibit, a glassblowing demonstration and discussion will be held from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. March 3 by the Student Innovation Center and the Gaffer’s Guild. This is a live event where students, faculty and staff glassblowers will demonstrate and discuss the process of creating blown glass.

The Gaffer’s Guild is Iowa State’s glassblowing club. With studio space in the Student Innovation Center, the Gaffer’s Guild has around 40 members who continue to carry on the ancient art of glass blowing and forming. 

“Amber’s work is intricate, whimsical, thought provoking and truly professional,” said Keith Kutz, senior award administrator and member of the Gaffer’s Guild. “There is something fascinating about taking found objects and re-working them for different uses.” 

The “Mythical Bounty: Glass Sculpture” exhibit will be on display through May 15 in the Brunnier Art Museum on the second floor of the Scheman Building. 

This event is free to attend but has limited in-person seating and requires registration.

For more information about Amber Cowan’s exhibit and the glass blowing demonstration, please visit the University Museum’s website.