CORNING, NY—As a precautionary measure for public health and safety, The Corning Museum of Glass (CMoG) and The Rockwell Museum will close temporarily to the public effective Monday, March 16 through April 12.
Pre-purchased Make Your Own Glass experiences coupled with admission passes for March 16 through April 12 will be automatically refunded to the credit card within two weeks. If only admission tickets were purchased, these will not be refunded as they can be used at any future date once the Museum reopens to the public. Students signed up for Studio classes will be contacted by a representative from The Studio. The Rockwell Museum will also either refund or honor admission tickets at a later date.
All public events previously scheduled to take place at either institution are cancelled through April 12.
Museums and cultural institutions around the country are closing their doors temporarily in order to safeguard the health of their staff and visitors.
“In times of stress and uncertainty, museums offer a respite from what’s going on in the outside world,” said Karol Wight, President and Executive Director of The Corning Museum of Glass. “We had hoped to remain open to provide that place of solace for our community. But what is happening right now is bigger than any one institution, and we have a responsibility to proactively do our part to promote social distancing and limit the spread of COVID-19. Even though the Museum does not see dense crowds this time of year, we know the risk of remaining open does not outweigh our responsibility to serve the public—and that’s exactly what we’re doing by closing. Like everyone else, we look forward to a return to normalcy, and to welcoming guests back to the Museum soon.”
“As a vital community resource, The Rockwell Museum is always working to better the health of those we serve through programs, exhibitions, and activities that activate the mind, body, and soul,” said Brian Whisenhunt, Executive Director of The Rockwell Museum. “While it is challenging not to be able to offer rich experiences as we normally would, we must close the Museum in the interest of public health and do our part to reduce the spread of COVID-19. As always, we’re thankful for our community’s understanding and support, and we look forward to seeing you at The Rockwell again soon.”
Experience Corning’s Museums from Home
While The Corning Museum of Glass is closed, the public is invited to explore the Museum’s many online resources, including our popular YouTube channel, which has hundreds of hours of glassmaking content, including live stream demos of past Guest Artists, Studio demonstrations, and You Design It; We Make It demos. Browse the digital collections of the Rakow Library and our online glass collections browser. If you haven’t already, watch the Museum featured in Netflix’s glassblowing competition show Blown Away, then view our behind-the-scenes content. You can even take a virtual tour of our galleries on Google Arts & Culture.
Rockwell fans can continue to browse the collection online, and even create a username to curate a collection of their favorite artworks and objects—be sure to share your collection with us online! Find some respite from the media by following along with #MuseumMomentofZen on Twitter and follow us on social media in the following weeks for stay-at-home activities for families, video tours, staff interviews and more.
The current situation is evolving rapidly, and we will continue to update our COVID-19 webpages (CMoG, Rockwell) with news related to reopening. Also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @CorningMuseum and @RockwellMuseum for updates.
