Corning Museum Of Glass

24 Hours In Corning, NY

Rail Road Station Arch

We are staying in a Holiday Garden Inn, just a few steps away from the Museum and I am sitting in their lounge at 6:25 while Evie sleeps peacefully upstairs.  They have free coffee but the breakfast buffet is twelve bucks, not free like at a Hampton Inn.  I will stick with coffee since I don't usually have much breakfast.

Late Fall Colors

Route 86 East

We left the lake about 8:30 Tuesday morning and had an easy two and a half-hour ride to Corning.  It was a pleasant ride on Interstate 86, as we drove past rust-colored mountains or hills, as the fall colors are about gone.  Still, like always, on Interstate 86, it was a beautiful drive, mountains, small towns, and farms, but mostly just open land, uninhabited and forested.  Because our hotel was next to the Museum, we checked in and were able to get a room so we took our bags upstairs, washed up and walked over to the Museum.

Corning Museum Of Glass

Museum Entrance

It's modernistic shell contrasts with the surrounding mountains and is situated on the campus of Corning International, its multiple research buildings with the world headquarters, across the Chemung River, a half-mile away.  We bought tickets for both the Museum and Rockwell Western Museum in town.  Our first stop was watching a demonstration of glass blowing, replete with a couple of kilns in a small auditorium.

Glass Blowing Demonstration

We then walked through the gift shop to the Contemporary Glass Collection where various artists' works were displayed. The objects ranged from still lifes of three-foot-high fruits, to old fashion glasses, to abstract, to functional.

Every Day Glasses

Still Life

Trash

After an hour, we enjoyed a root beer and pizza in their cafeteria.  We then walked through the Innovation Center which emphasized glass making, from bits of minerals to bottles, to Corningware, to lens for glasses and telescopes, to glass insulation.

Innovation Center

These two sections were interesting and easily done although the last was section was technical.  We then ended our visit for the day with the 35 Centuries of Glass Wing which was overwhelming with its glass objects, from the Greeks to the Romans, up through the centuries.

An Ancient Greek Glass Cup

It was almost too much to take in because there was so much to see. For example, the Glass In America Gallery must have had thousands of glass bottles, cups, and bowls in 15 to 20 glass lit cases. By 2:00, I had enough so we decided to return Wednesday morning and catch the rest of the Museum when we were fresh.

Centerway Walking Bridge

We went back to our hotel and relaxed watched some of the news before walking across the Centersway Walking Bridge to Center Way Square, Centennial Park and the Gaffer District downtown where we visited the Rockwell Museum.

Center Way Square

Unfortunately, the third floor was closed because of a party so we did not get to see everything.

Native American Applying Make-up

The galleries we did see celebrated Western art, landscapes of the West, with an emphasis on Native Americans.  It also depicted many modern themes, like the painting and sculpture below, celebrating the unleashing of freedom for women and child abuse.

A Modern Allegory Of Delacroix's Liberty

Explanation of Painting

Hear No Evil, See No Evil, Do No Evil

Victims

We stayed for a half-hour but enjoyed what we did view.  We then walked along Market Street, the center of downtown Corning, with its quaint shops and well-restored buildings, making it visually interesting.

Centennial Park

We stopped for a beer, of course, at the Burger and Brewpub.  It was fairly quiet so we didn't' get to meet anyone other than the barkeep, then walked through Centennial Park and across the bridge. We were exhausted by the time we got back to our hotel.

It felt luxurious to just relax on our beds and watch TV for an hour or two. We had grand plans for the night but settled on walking just up the street from our Holiday Inn to Captain Morgan's Sports Bar, a bit of a dive but it was fine. They had a beer, burgers, and fries so we were happy enough.  It was a quiet night although the back room seemed to be busy.  We ate and did not linger because we were whooped from our day at the Museums.  I think I would be less tired if I had hiked all day.  There's something about standing around for hours, looking at object de arts, that tires me out and brings on a backache.  Needless to say, it was good to get back to our room and fall asleep watching the World Series with the Astros up 2-0.  Imagine our shock when we woke up this morning with the Nationals winning 7-2.