The museum's iconic Hot Shop cone is designed to mirror the wood-frame burner cones historically used by local lumber mills.
The Chihuly Bridge of Glass features a 40-foot-high 'Seaform Pavilion' made of 2,364 pieces of glass.
The Hot Shop amphitheater allows for live audience interaction with artists via a two-way microphone system.
The museum operates a Visiting Artist Residency Program, allowing artists to experiment with glass in a professional studio setting.
The 'Venetian Wall' on the pedestrian bridge displays over 100 pieces of glass art from Chihuly's Venetian series.
The museum is built on a site formerly occupied by industrial maritime industries along the Thea Foss Waterway.
The facility serves as an educational hub, hosting glass-blowing demonstrations that are often broadcast to schools.
The museum structure was designed by architect Arthur Erickson.
The Museum of Glass is a 75,000-square-foot facility dedicated to the medium of glass art, featuring a prominent 90-foot-tall stainless steel cone housing a Hot Shop. It serves as an active production space where visitors observe resident artists blowing glass in real-time. The museum collection focuses on contemporary glass art, housing works from Dale Chihuly and other internationally recognized artists. It is connected to downtown Tacoma by the Chihuly Bridge of Glass, a 500-foot-long pedestrian walkway. The facility architecture utilizes structural glass and steel to maximize natural light and views of the Thea Foss Waterway. The museum rotates exhibitions in its galleries and maintains an outdoor plaza for site-specific installations.
Inside the Hot Shop amphitheater for action shots of glass blowing, or mid-span on the Chihuly Bridge of Glass for architectural framing.
Check the daily Hot Shop schedule upon arrival to ensure you catch a live glass-blowing demonstration.
Walk the Chihuly Bridge of Glass before sunset to see how the natural light interacts with the installation pieces.
Visit the outdoor plaza to view the reflected art in the water features.
Do not attempt to walk across the Chihuly Bridge of Glass during high-wind events if access is restricted, and avoid rushing through the gallery spaces to ensure you see the live demos.
Closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. Generally open Wednesday through Sunday.
Maintain distance from the Hot Shop safety glass during glass-blowing demonstrations; follow all signage regarding flash photography in specific gallery areas.
