Glass Isn't Trash: Rethinking Sustainability Through Creative Practice
What does sustainability look like in an artist's studio?
For some, it begins with recycling materials. For others, it starts with asking different questions—about the life of an object, the responsibility of making, and the impact creative choices have long after a project is complete.
These ideas were at the heart of the first installment of the Kansas City Artists Coalition's “Open to the Public” Lecture Series, featuring artist and designer Allison Wood in her presentation, "Glass Isn't Trash."
In this thoughtful conversation, Allison shares insights from her interdisciplinary practice, exploring how material choices, studio habits, and long-term environmental awareness can shape the way artists approach their work, with her practice as the example. Rather than viewing sustainability as a limitation, she invites us to see it as an opportunity for innovation, thoughtful design, and creative problem-solving.
An artist, educator, and designer, Allison's career bridges the worlds of fine art, industrial design, public art, and fabrication. She currently teaches at the Kansas City Art Institute and serves as a consulting industrial designer for Rock Cottage Glassworks, one of only two glassblowing studios in Kansas City. Her work spans public art, product design, digital modeling, and fabrication, informed by years of experience studying glass, and sculpture.
Following her graduation from KCAI's Sculpture Department, Allison continued her education at Dale Chihuly's Pilchuck Glass School before apprenticing in glassblowing for nearly seven years with Dierk Van Keppel at Rock Cottage Glassworks. She later earned a master's degree in Interior Architecture, Furniture, and Product Design from Kansas State University, with additional study in Copenhagen, Denmark, research presented internationally in Valencia, Spain, and professional design experience with OFS. Today, her personal work continues to explore lighting, furniture, and sustainable design through the lens of closed-loop life cycles.
Allison's lecture reminds us that sustainability is not only an environmental conversation—it is also a creative one. It asks artists to consider how the materials they choose, the objects they create, and the systems they participate in can contribute to a more thoughtful and resilient future.
About the “Open to the Public” Lecture Series
KCAC's “Open to the Public” Lecture Series brings together artists, educators, and cultural workers to explore how creative lives are built and sustained through diverse practices and shared dialogue. Free and open to the community, the series reflects KCAC's commitment to accessible arts education and meaningful public programming while creating opportunities for artists and audiences to learn from one another.
Join us each month as we continue the conversation with speakers exploring artistic method, history, activism, illustration, wellness, food, and professional practice.
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We hope you'll join us for an upcoming conversation.