Glass is one of the most widely used materials on planet earth. It helps us see better, see farther, and bring light to the darkness. It holds our food, our beverages; it’s used for electronics, medical applications… and oh yeah – it can be formed into beautiful works of art.

Today we’re taking in and creating some of those works of art right here in the mountain town of Black Mountain at the brand new home of the North Carolina Glass Center. Opened right after Hurricane Helene, this medium known for its breakability toughed it out through the storm and this new facility opened to enthusiastic acclaim.

The North Carolina Glass Center has another location in Asheville’s River Arts District – and we highly recommend you visit both destinations. But today we’re checking out what this new, state-of-the-art Black Mountain building has in store.

The North Carolina Glass Center is a non-profit, public access glass studio and gallery. These low-cost shared studios help emerging artists launch their careers and enable established glass artists to pursue new and ambitious challenges. The gallery is gorgeous. And the educational programs provide thousands of aspiring glass artists with high quality, affordable instruction.

The instructors here guide you through the entire process. And it’s so fun! You can take one day classes for just a couple hours. Or you can take multi-week classes if you totally fall in love with the artform. And step into a tradition that dates back thousands of years.

The first glassblower got started over 2,000 years ago near modern day Syria. And humankind began making glass thousands of years before that. Today in Black Mountain – the tradition continues.

The North Carolina Glass Center is a great place to come and shop while supporting local artists, and to come try your hand at creating something all your own.