Shattered Illusions: Reconsidering Glassware through the Lens of Care

Shattered Illusions: Reconsidering Glassware through the Lens of Care examines house upper-class Savannahians in the 19th century used the wealth they accumulated through the exploration of enslaved and domestic labor to acquire luxurious objects for their homes; in this case glassware. These fragile objects have been passed down through generations of wealthy Savannahians, to which we are able to appreciate today, but disconnected from the origins of the generations of the enslaved and domestic labor behind caring for them. Rather than focusing on the allure of these glittery objects, Shattered Illusions will reframe the glassware as the subject of those individuals' care. Featuring objects from Telfair's permanent collection of colored, etched, and cut glass, this exhibition will ask viewers to consider the labor behind their continual preservation.