If you’re wondering how much the giant glass sculpture sold for, you’re not alone. Many people have been asking the same question since the sale. The answer, however, is not as simple as one might think.
The sale of the Giant Glass
In July of 2018, the Giant Glass was sold by its owner, Joe Manteufel, to a private collector for an undisclosed sum. The Giant Glass is a massive blown glass sculpture created by artist Dale Chihuly in 1989. The piece is over 9 feet tall and weighs nearly 2 tons. It is believed to be one of only a handful of similar pieces created by the artist.
The history of the Giant Glass
It all started with a view. In 1851, merchants in New York City’s Broadway area began installing large windows to show off their merchandise. This practice quickly caught on, and by the end of the 19th century, “show window culture” had taken hold in cities across America.
In 1904, the world’s first “dirty” store opened its doors in Philadelphia. This new type of store allowed customers to handle the merchandise before purchasing it, and it quickly became popular. As a result, demand for larger windows grew.
In 1911, a Philadelphia glazier named William Cubbitt Stephens saw an opportunity. He invented a new type of window that could be installed without frames or supports. Stephens called his invention the “Giant Glass,” and it measured 12 feet by 24 feet.
The Giant Glass was an instant hit, and Stephens began selling his invention to stores all over the country. He even sold one to President Woodrow Wilson for the White House. Today, Stephens’ Giant Glass can be seen on buildings across America, from small businesses to skyscrapers.
The meaning behind the Giant Glass
The Corning Museum of Glass is home to the world’s largest collection of glass and glassmaking materials. The museum’s collection includes more than 45,000 objects, spanning 3,500 years of history. Among these objects is the Giant Glass, a massive piece of glass that was created in the early 20th century.
The Giant Glass was created by French artist Henri Rousseau in 1905. It was originally designed to be used as a window pane in a Parisian department store. However, the piece was never used and remained in Rousseau’s studio until his death in 1910. After Rousseau’s death, the Giant Glass was purchased by an American collector and eventually made its way to the Corning Museum of Glass.
At 12 feet wide and 18 feet tall, the Giant Glass is one of the largest pieces of glass in the world. It is also one of the most valuable pieces in the museum’s collection, worth an estimated $1 million.
The symbolism of the Giant Glass
ChristianAppy.com explains that the Giant Glass is a “metaphor for the vastness of space and the infinite possibilities that it represents.” The website goes on to say that, “The experience of standing beneath the Giant Glass is meant to be both awe-inspiring and humbling, as it reminds us of our place in the universe.”
The impact of the Giant Glass
The sale of the steel-and-glass structure, which was completed in 1963, is one of the most expensive ever for a work by a living artist. It was also the second-highest pricepaid for a work by a living artist at auction, behind only Jeff Koons’s balloon dog, which sold for $58.4 million in 2013.
The legend of the Giant Glass
A piece of blown glass 18 feet high and weighing over two tons was auctioned off for $4.5 million in 2004. The piece, nicknamed the “Giant Glass” was created by artist Dale Chihuly and is the largest of his “Seaforms” series. The sculpture was purchased by an anonymous buyer and has been on display at the Chihuly Garden and Glass museum in Seattle since 2012.
The mystery of the Giant Glass
In 2014, a glass sculpture that towered over 20 feet tall and weighed nearly two tons sold at auction for a staggering $120,000. The piece, known as the Giant Glass, was created by the late American artist Dale Chihuly.
Chihuly was best known for his intricate blown-glass sculptures, which often featured colorful, organic shapes. The Giant Glass was one of his largest and most complex works. It took nearly a year to create, and consisted of more than 2,000 individual pieces of glass.
When the sculpture was first put up for sale, experts predicted that it would fetch between $50,000 and $70,000. But when the final bidding closed, the piece had sold for more than double that amount.
The identity of the buyer has never been revealed, and the current whereabouts of the Giant Glass are unknown. Given its size and fragile nature, it’s likely that the sculpture is being kept in a private collection where it can be properly cared for.
The beauty of the Giant Glass
The thought of paying $3.3 million for a glass object may be an extravagance to some, but to others, it is a work of art. An anonymous buyer placed the winning bid on January 28, 2015, at Sotheby’s New York for a sculpture by artist Dale Chihuly. The piece, which is entitled “Giant Glass,” is a blown glass sculpture that stands over nine feet tall and weighs almost 2,000 pounds.
