MARY MILLS: AMERICAN GLASS

6/9/2026

AMERICAN GLASS: BORN OF NECESSITY, CRAFTED WITH SOUL
4 WEEK ONLINE ZOOM COURSE
$115 JRACRAFT MEMBERS | $145 NON-MEMBERS

June 9 - June 30, 2026
Tuesdays 7pm-8:30PM ET

Discover 250 years of glassmaking in America. Immigrant craftsman and entrepreneurs initially focused production on the necessities—primarily windows and bottles. Regardless, glassblowers found opportunities to “play” in the factory. Using major museum collections, historic photographs, videos, and archaeological collections, this course will examine how the demand for specific skills and opportunities for creativity evolved with changes in technology and design trends. Special emphasis will be placed on the origins of the American Studio Glass movement and the shift from factory to studio.

MEET YOUR INSTRUCTOR: MARY MILLS

Mary Mills is the Director of Exhibitions and Collections at Wheaton Arts and Cultural Center in Millville, New Jersey, and is curator for the Museum of American Glass. Her recent exhibitions include Transformations: The Wasserstein Collection of Contemporary Glass; Centuries of Tomfoolery: Trick Glasses, Pipes, and Whimsical Delights; and Amber Cowan: Alchemy of Adornment. Mills also serves as historic glass specialist for AECOM Cultural Resources, assisting archaeologists in identifying and interpreting glass artifacts recovered in Philadelphia.

Mills formerly held the position of Education Programs Manager at The Corning Museum of Glass, where she received the Richards Award for Research in American Glass and is now a Fellow. She lectures extensively and has taught American and European glass for graduate programs at the Winterthur Museum, Sotheby’s Institute of Art, and the Cooper-Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum. Mills holds a master’s degree from the University of Delaware Winterthur Program in Early American Culture. She has served on many nonprofit boards and has been a Trustee of The Neustadt Collection of Tiffany Glass since 2005.