Sunday, April 2, 2017

Glass program celebrates four decades of growth

by Margaux Armfield

For more than 40 years, Tulane has offered students the opportunity to explore glass as a sculptural medium. Professor Gene Koss took charge of the program in 1977 and has seen it grow from only eight students to more than 70.

Tulane’s glass program is unique in that it emphasizes using glass as a sculptural element to create artwork as opposed to craftwork.

“If you come and study [glass] at Tulane, it’s going to be sculpture that’s idea-based,” Koss said. “We want the work to be elevated enough that it can fit into the fine art world.”

This emphasis on sculpture encourages students to create mixed media pieces. Students have access to the woodshop, metal shop and sculpture foundry in addition to the glass studio. Senior Ethan Champagne, currently enrolled in Intermediate Glass, said the program has taught him a variety of technical skills.
“We have some new laser cutters and new computer software to help us with design and fabrication, but the thing that [Koss] finds and that we find enjoyable is having something to do with our hands,” Champagne said.                     [Read more: Tulane Hullabaloo, March 22, 2017]

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