Matt Urban

Bio

Matthew Urban began his career in art/ craft/ glass at The Philadelphia College of Art and Design as an industrial design student. The design field was where his first inspirations for glass came from. Intrigued by the multitudes of designs produced in glass from Italy from 1920 to 1962, Matthew began to research the designers, architects, masters and sculptors from this distinctive time period. One semester he took an elective class in glassblowing and he soon changed majors from industrial design to glass. That following summer he received a scholarship to the Corning Museum of Glass to study with Maestro Gianni Toso and decided to make glassmaking his life.

That was about thirty years ago, and in that time Matthew has been an artist in residence, instructor, and gaffer with Corning Museum of Glass. An artist in residence and instructor at Penland School of Craft, a staff member at Pilchuck Glass School, collaborated with numerous glass factories, as well as training factory glassworkers here in America as well as abroad. Matthew has studied and worked around the world with numerous master glass makers, specifically from Murano, Italy. These interactions have had a profound impact on Matthew's approach to glassmaking and appreciation for the history of glass.

In May 2007 completed his Master’s Degree at Illinois State University in Glass/Sculpture; in 2010, he completed building his artist studio. Matthew's studio has an ultra-low carbon footprint in addition he uses 100% recycled glass for all his designs and sculptures. For the past 26 years, Matthew has enjoyed operating a successful glassblowing studio in Bloomington, Illinois, creating his designs as well as commission work for nationally renowned artists and designers. 

Artist Statement

I like craft, understating a material and process in an intimate and unique way. I like history; understanding the past informs the construction of stable bridges to the future. I like efficiency; my process is a constant quest for simplicity. I find these pursuits intriguing because there is only a beginning and no end, this is a sport you can play, if you're lucky, your whole life long.