Michael Glancy discusses James Carpenter’s experience as a designer at Corning Glass Works. Oral history interview with Michael Glancy by Barb Elam, conducted via telephone, October 9, 2018, Bard Graduate Center. Clip length: 01:19.

Michael Glancy: The difference between the Americans—the American studio glass artists design and make their own objects. This became pretty apparent when Jamie Carpenter was hired by Corning Glass Works [Corning Glass Works, now Corning Incorporated, Corning, New York] in the ’80s, I think it was. And he designed objects in the tradition of—the European tradition of a designer in a studio on paper. He took them down to the floor to have prototypes made, [clears throat] and the blower said, ‘You can’t do that. It just—you can’t do that. That won’t work.’ And Jamie said, ‘Oh, sure you can. Here, let me show you.’ And then bells went off in the factory—‘woop woop woop’ [mimicking the sound of an alarm] ‘Designer is touching a blowpipe.’ And they had to stop and rewrite the Flint Glass Workers [Union] contract to identify a studio glass artist as someone who designs and makes his own pieces, and for the purpose of educating the workforce can demonstrate how he wants them to be done. And that’s a true story.