Day 3: Corning Museum of Glass, Corning

Dale Chihuly Glass Sculpture

Corning Museum of Glass

The last day of our trip takes us just over to the other side of town from where we are staying.  The Corning Museum of Glass was founded in 1951 on the 100th anniversary of the Corning Glass Works Co. It underwent two major renovations - in 1978 and 2001 - in response to its ever-expanding collections and a major flood in 1972 that damaged close to 13,000 objects (source: Wikipedia). Today, the museum houses over 45,000 glass objects, many over 3,500 years old.

The Museum, initially a company manufacturing glass, originated in Massachusetts, as the Bay State Glass Company. Its founder, Amory Houghton, relocated the company to Brooklyn, New York, in 1851, subsequently changing its name to the Brooklyn Flint Glass Company. In 1868, the company once again re-located, this time to Corning, New York, where it has been ever since. From 1868 to 1989 it was known as the Corning Glass Works, at which point it became Corning Incorporated (source: Wikipedia).

I was surprised to discover Corning Incorporated's size and reach. In the late 90s, it divested itself of many of its well-known homeware lines, such as Corningware, Corelle, and Pyrex, and expanded its research and development sectors. Since 2008, it has been involved in the creation of state-of-the-art instruments for industries including technology, the environment, the sciences, and telecommunications. It is a publicly-traded company with over $8 billion (2012 figures) in revenues and over $29 billion in assets (source: Wikipedia).

The Museum is divided into five main galleries, one of which is subdivided into smaller galleries, based on the category of glass displayed (e.g., glass from specific areas of the world, glass from different time periods, glass as functional objects). Other galleries include those named after donors who have contributed extensive personal collections, now incorporated into the Museum's holdings. One is a study gallery that functions as open storage for surplus objects, and, starting in March 2015, a new wing will open, exhibiting the contemporary glass collections, some of which have never been seen, due to space restrictions. In addition to the exhibition galleries, the Museum also houses a studio, where glass-making courses are taught, workshops conducted, and artist-in residence programs administered. Of note is the Innovation Center, a space dedicated to interactive stations that teach about the nature, composition, and evolution of glass (source: Corning Museum of Glass website). 

In light of our limited experiences with glass - mainly as functional objects used in the home - Greg and I are struck by its different iterations, especially in its role as a medium for artistic expression. Like other art media, glass is remarkably versatile and can be used to depict both representational and abstract ideas. Among the notable objects I see are the enormous, amorphous sculptures of contemporary artist Dale Chihuly; the modernist functional objects of Marcel Breuer, Rene Lalique, and Gerrit Reitveld; and the stunning masterpieces of the Renaissance Venetian glass masters.

 

In additiont to exhibition spaces, the Museum has a large giftshop selling a comprehensive array of books, clothing, and glassware from around the world. We lunch on a wide selection of healthy food in the airy, efficiently functioning cafeteria, before heading home, much impressed with the Museum's collections, on-going projects, and commitment to the small community of Corning, New York.

Click here to see Corning Museum of Glass slideshow

Day 2: Watkins Glen Gorge, Watkins Glen; Cornell University, Ithaca

Leaves, Watkins Glen Gorge

Watkins Glen State Park

Looking out our motel window, partly cloudy skies seem portentous, this Sunday morning. We arrived in Corning the previous evening after a drive from Rochester fraught with fear. The number of road kill we encounter - of deer and other large animals - was unnerving (and given the state of the bodies, we know the poor beasts didn't die painlessly). We're puzzled: the local motorists don't seem reckless. The likely explanation: too many wild animals that inadvertently stray onto the beaten path. In future, we intend to avoid night driving.

Given Corning's relatively central location, we choose it as our base, and settle on this affordable motel. Over breakfast, we note, from their accents, the number of international guests (who seem to outnumber the North American ones)  and wonder what Corning's draw is. We discover, what could be the answer, on arriving at Watkins Glen State Park. 

Situated in the village of Watkins Glen, a 45-minute drive from Corning, the Park is essentially a gorge, 200 ft. high, cut into the relatively soft sedimentary rock by debris deposited by the area's many waterfalls, formed over numerous ice ages. The Park's planners were ingenious in carving out paths, steps and bridges - made of the same rock as the gorge itself - that wind their way along the sides of the gorge, to its top. The effect is a seamless blend of the natural and the man made.

Starting at the parking lot at the base of the Gorge, Greg and I walk at a leisurely pace to the top,  a journey roughly a mile in distance. Along the way, we pass breathtaking vistas of rock formations, in addition to intriguing plant specimens and water ways. Of note is the colours of the flora and rock formations, dazzling in their iridescence. We also remark on the cool micro-climate, created by the combination of shadow-generated rock formations and humidity-laden atmosphere.  After our three- hour walk, we arrive at the top of the gorge and discover a cemetery in a picturesque setting, which we explore for a time, before heading back down to the parking lot, using a more direct path.

It is noon by the time we head out of Watkins Glen State Park, so we explore the village of Watkins Glen for a place to eat. Wildflower Cafe, with its diverse menu of home made soups and sandwiches, is just the spot. After an hour for lunch, we drive uphill out of Watkins Glen, on roads affording more breathtaking views of valleys, vivid with autumn's colours.

Twenty minutes out, our enjoyment is suddenly marred by the car's fuel indicator light going off, signalling an emptying tank. Mortified by our oversight - we'd been driving two days and close to 900 miles since our initial fill-up - we quickly assess our options. Given that our destination was another hour away, we decide it is too far to wait, and opt for turning back to Watkins Glen. On arrival, we note the increasingly heavy traffic in the village, much lighter prior to our departure, not even 30 minutes before.

We spend another 15 minutes hunting for a gas station (oh, to have had a smart phone!), panic stricken we would come to a sudden stop in the congested traffic. We pull in to a service station, and wait another 20 minutes for our turn. By the time we resume our trip, greatly relieved our predicament had not resulted in a mishap, we had lost over an hour of precious time for our next stop: Ithaca, New York State, and the beautiful campus of Cornell University.

Click here to see Watkins Glen Gorge slideshow

Cornell University

With both undergraduate and graduate programs, Cornell University was founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White. Cornell founded Western Union Inc. and was also a senator and education administrator. Dickson White was a diplomat, educator, and historian. Both envisaged the university as offering theory- and applied-based courses in the arts, sciences, and humanities. In addition to the Ithaca campus's 745 acres, Cornell University has campuses in New York City and Qatar, and counts close to 30 Rhodes Scholars and 50 Nobel Laureates as alumni (source: Wikipedia).

As we have lost over an hour, we arrive at 4:00, rather late in the day for an extensive campus tour. We make our way quickly from the parking lot to the Cornell Central Campus, the hub of the University, where the majority of buildings of architectural note lies. These include Sage Hall, Barnes Hall, and McGraw Tower. The university's architectural styles vary, from Victorian and Neoclassical to international and modernist, many of whose examples can be found at Central Campus. Most remarkable is the way the university campus is laid out - irregularly - and how this, together with its hilltop setting, with its spectacular views of Ithaca City and Cayuga Lake, comprises its charm and beauty.

I photograph incessantly, taking as much advantage of the waning light as possible. Sadly, we are able to take in the exteriors of only a few of the buildings, but feel fortunate to have explored the campus even superficially. We resolve to return for a more extensive visit.

With the fading light my fear of driving at night returns, haunted by visions of innocent deer and badgers, limbs torn and entrails smeared on pavement. The hour and a half-long trip feels much longer, compounded near its end by a missed highway exit, a foolish glance to the rear, a slight bump felt, and the instantaneous realization that we have just run over a raccoon. Greg and I shriek. He turns back to look at a dessicated carcass. Alas, the poor thing had already been killed.

We fall into bed, exhausted, after a day of invigorating activity.

Click here to see Cornell University slideshow

Day 1: Eastman House, International Museum of Photography and Film, Rochester

Front facade, Eastman House

Saturday dawns bright and sunny: the perfect day for the start of our road trip to Upstate New York. I am excited about my first trip to the Finger Lakes District. A popular tourist destination, the district consists of eleven lakes, each long and narrow (resembling fingers), with the two longest lakes, Cayuga and Seneca, also being the deepest in the U.S. (source: Wikipedia).

The lakes originally flowed northwards, but as a result of the Laurentian Ice Sheet (a thin but extensive glacier that started in the Pleistocene period), many of the area's deep valleys and dams were created from the remnants of its debris, resulting in the many lakes. The surrounding uplands, however, show little evidence of glaciation, though the ice's deep scouring of the valleys resulted in tributaries high above the lakes and valley floors (source: Wikipedia).

The lakes' names - Cayuga, Seneca, Otisco, and Skaneateles, among others - refer to the various tribes of the Iroquois nation, a large and powerful one that resisted European colonization up to two hundred years after initial contact. Indeed, other tribes moved to the Finger Lakes district seeking the protection of the Iroqois, forming the Iroquois Confederacy. The Confederacy's power weakened in time, however, due to in-fighting amongst the tribes, resulting in many members fighting alongside the British against the Americans, during the American Revolutionary War of 1775. Post-war, many of the Iroquois' lands were claimed by the Americans and opened for sale, while the tribes were assigned to specific reservations, weakening the Confederacy further (source: Wikipedia).

At the beginning of the 19th century, much of the Finger Lakes District was settled by New Englanders, migrating westward, or by Pennsylvanians, heading north. At this time, a Christianity revival inspired an activist movement, leading to reforms. Initiatives such as the underground railroad, which helped rescue those running from slavery in the deep south, were established and flourished (source: Wikipedia).

Our first stop, the city of Rochester, New York, located on the western Finger Lakes of Hemlock and Canadice, is part of the protected 6,684 acre Hemlock-Canadice State Forest, and site of some of the most beautiful autumn colours this part of the continent is known for.

An unexpected delay at the U.S.-Canada border, results in loss of time, and we arrive at our first destination later than intended. Even so, the gardens of George Eastman House, International Museum of Photography and Film, in Rochester is scintillating with colour. We enter through the back, the museum's entrance, and slowly make our way through the modernist addition, taking in the exhibits of 19th century, modern-day cameras and other photography- and film-related ephemera. In addition, there are exhibits of both vintage and contemporary photographs.

Once the private home of the Eastman family (George Eastman was the founder of the Eastman Kodak Company), the non-profit museum opened to the public in 1949. We make our way through the modernist building, added to the main house in 1989, at a cost of $30 million. It houses state-of-the-art archival and research space and galleries. The gardens at the back and sides of the facility have been restored. We note the enormous wealth it would have taken to create the original residence, designed in the Colonial Revivalist style, using the finest of materials, and furnished with the most luxurious late 19th and early 20th century European and American furniture and decorative arts. This is not surprising as, at the height of its success, the Kodak Company employed nearly 60,000 of Rochester's residents.

Click here to see Eastman House Museum slideshow