Carnegie Museum of Natural History and the Carnegie Museum of Art.
As we enter the main entrance to both museums, artworks of glass by the Czeck artist Petr Hora similar to the ones pictured below, were prominently displayed.
Glass artwork from the American artist Sidney Hutter, like the works pictured below, lined the entrance.
The Museum of Natural History featured exhibits on ancient Egypt, the history of Saudi Arabia, and on life in the Arctic. We viewed the various exhibits looking for examples of the use of glass. Ancient Egyptians were among the first cultures to use glass and a precursor to glass called faience. The Carnegie Museum exhibits included many figures like the ones pictured below.
The Egyptian exhibit also included faience used to make drinking vessels and elaborate jewelry like that pictured below.
The Phipps Conservatory was the next stop on our glass and ceramics trip. The Phipps Conservatory is dedicated to educating the public about sustainability in everything from agriculture, to public landscaping, to home gardening. Our focus on glass suggests that the most important use of glass is in the architecture of the conservatory itself. Most of the above ground structure is made of glass.
The conservatory is only possible because the properties of glass allow light in but also seals well enough to create the environmental conditions necessary for exotic plants to thrive. The ceiling shown below is typical of all the ceilings and roofs in the building, and shows how light easily penetrates glass.
Glass was also used in sculptures and artwork that were strategically placed in each biome to merge art and landscaping.
Questions
1. Why is it important for conservatories to include rare species of plants in their exhibits?
2. Why is the ability of glass to allow light to pass through it, both life enabling and life threatening for exotic plants in the conservatory?
3. How does climate change affect the operation of a conservatory? (Think of a greenhouse)
I enjoyed the last question, especially with climate fluctuations.
ReplyDeleteI liked your focus on the role of conservatories in preserving rare and endangered species. I also liked that you discussed the properties of glass that make greenhouses possible.
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