On Saturday, September 26, 2015 the Albany Museum of Art will host the opening reception for one of their newest exhibitions, Ralph Harvey Retrospective: A History of Studio Glass Education in the Rural South. The event, Hot Glass and Cold Beer will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. and will offer guests the opportunity to meet the artist, watch live on-site glass blowing demonstrations, enjoy a couple of cold beers, BBQ, and the music of Sam Sniper, an Athens Ga alternative country band. Visitors are encouraged to tour the galleries and see why Ralph has become a regional legend in the studio glass movement. When asked what he wanted visitors to get out of his artwork, Ralph responded with simply, “fun and joy.”

The exhibition spans three of AMA’s galleries and covers more than five decades of Harvey’s works, following the progression of the artist’s vision from his days as a painting major at the University of Iowa through the years he was the glassblowing instructor at Georgia Southwestern State and on to his current work. One gallery also highlights the work of GSW alumni and Harvey’s students.

“Our opening reception will give the opportunity for three generations of glassblowers to come together and indulge in their art form once more in an atmosphere of awe and celebration,” said Katie Dillard, AMA’s Interim Curator of Collections & Exhibitions. “To miss out on this opening event would be like missing out on modern history being made.”