Museum of Glass

Museum of Glass is the anchor of Tacoma's waterfront museum district, and the reason most first-time visitors come away talking about the city rather than the drive. The building's steel cone houses a working hot shop where a resident team blows, gathers and shapes glass in front of a tiered audience, narrated as the work happens; it is the rare museum experience that rewards sitting still. Galleries alongside show contemporary studio glass rather than a permanent survey, so the museum reads differently from one season to the next. Allow an hour if you are passing through on a waterfront walk and two or three if you intend to watch a piece through from gather to annealer. The museum sits at the eastern foot of the Chihuly Bridge of Glass, which makes it a natural pairing with the museums on Pacific Avenue rather than a standalone stop.

Verified details

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What to know

• The hot shop schedule depends on the resident team's programme; not every visit will include a full piece from start to finish.

Editor's tips

• Take a seat in the hot shop amphitheatre near the start of a session rather than mid-piece — the narration explains what you are watching and the payoff comes at the end.
• Approach on foot across the Chihuly Bridge of Glass from Pacific Avenue; the museum's own entrance is on the waterfront side of the building.

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