Floating Glassmaking Studio Docks In DUMBO

DUMBO, NY — A floating canal barge outfitted with glassmaking equipment and gaffers docked in DUMBO this week to offer live demonstrations of the art.

The Corning Museum of Glass' canal barge started its journey around the state at Brooklyn Bridge Park on Thursday for a tour commemorating the company's 150th anniversary of their move from the city to Corning, N.Y.

"It's a 150-year history that all began just two blocks away," said Karol White, executive director of the museum. "You might even call today a homecoming."

The floating studio, dubbed the "GlassBarge," will be at the Brooklyn Bride Park until May 28 giving free public glassmaking demonstrations and showing off recently made pieces.

To kick off the four-month tour around the state, glassmaker Helen Tegeler, 45, created a blue bowl using the barge's all electronic equipment — as opposed to gas furnaces common inside regular studios — while dealing with the East River's current.

Each demonstration lasts about 30 minutes and attendees can either buy tickets to watch the glassmaking on the barge or view it from the shore for free.

The barge will trace a similar route along the Hudson River and Erie Canal as the Brooklyn Flint Company, which later became Corning Incorporate, left the city to relocate to Corning 150 years ago, the museum said.

"GlassBarge" will dock in towns like Yonkers and Poughkeepsie to offer the demonstrations before it returns home to Corning on Sept. 22.

Images: Nicholas Rizzi/Patch