CONTEVPORARY

THE SOSIN COLLECTION

BY CARLA JEAN SCHWARTZ

he Jean and Hilbert Sosin
glass collection is a his-
torical record of the studio
glass movement. Their col-
lection, which is one of the largest
and important privately held con-
temporary glass collections in the
country, contains many early and
recent works of the founding artists
of the movement.
Since the Sosins began collec-
ting almost twenty years ago, their
collection documents the evolution
of many major American glass ar-
tists. Littleton, Myers, Chihuly,
Peiser and Carlson are only a few
of the notable artists they have col-
lected in depth. Ferdinand Hamp-
son, co-owner of the Habatat
Galleries believe the Sosin collec-
tion is important and substantial
because it pre-dates many of the
collections today.
"During the last several years,
our aim has been to make annual-
ly several acquisitions of works by
the major figures in the movement,
while constantly looking to acquire
the works of promising young ar-
tists," says Jean.
Parts of the Sosin's 200 piece
collection have toured the country
in several exhibitions. In 1987 the

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University of Michigan-Dearborn
exhibited some of their holdings
and produced a twenty-five page
color catalog titled, "Contem-
porary Glass, The Collection of
Jean and Hilbert Sosin.
These dedicated collectors are
actively involved in the glass move-
ment nationally and locally. Hilbert
Sosin, an accountant, is currently
treasurer of the national organiza-
tion Alliance for Contemporary
Glass. They are both on the board
of the Creative Glass Center of
America.
In Michigan both Hilbert and
Jean were instrumental in forming
the Metropolitan Detroit Contem-
porary Glass Group, an educa-
tional group. Hilbert is the current
president, while Jean is the pro-
gram chairman. Jean Sosin is on
the steering committee of tile 20th
Century Decorative Arts Group at
the Detroit Institute of Arts. In the
exhibit "Glass: Sculpture and Mix-
ed Media," at the Detroit Artist
Market in honor of Michigan Glass
month the curator was Jean Sosin.
"They have been very active
promoting glass as an art move-
ment," says Hampson. The Sosins
were also instrumental in forming

