Hot Glass Blowing Classes
Are you feeling the itch to take one of our glass blowing classes in Minneapolis, MN? You’ve found the perfect place. Take a look through our hot glass blowing programs below to find one that suits your interest and familiarity level. Our friendly instructors, simple-to-use equipment, and helpful facilities will ensure you have a stellar time—whether you’re just starting with glass blowing or seek to grow your skills further. Our glass blowing classes in Minneapolis, MN, tend to fill up quickly, so be sure to sign up early if you find one you don’t want to miss. All actively enrolled students get discounted rental rates in the glassblowing Hot Shop (this discount does not include additional equipment usage). We look forward to seeing you at our next class! Reach out to our studio phone at 612-759-8476 or the Program Manager via email for additional questions.
Requirements: Registration is available to students 14 years old and up. View our full Terms & Conditions here.
Scholarships: Find out more about our scholarship opportunities here.
In order to protect you and our instructors' health, we kindly suggest participants wear a disposable face mask to our classes to prevent the spread of illness and keep our studio running. Disposable face masks are available upon arrival if you are comfortable doing so, but are not required.
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2026 Visiting Artist Workshop with Cooper O’Brien | Mold School
6-day workshop held December 4-11, 2026. The workshop is split into two segments:
Friday 12/4-Sunday 12/6, 9am-5pm with a one hour lunch break
Wednesday 12/9-Friday 12/11, 9am-5pm with a one hour lunch break
Prerequisites: No prior experience required. Open to ages 14 years and older.
Cost: $990/person. All materials are provided. Eligible for member discounts.
Course Description: Mold School is a deep dive into the fundamentals of hotcasting through to experimental moldmaking. We'll begin with sand casting fundamentals and the teamwork and workflow that hot casting demands — learning to move molten glass as a coordinated shop. From there, the workshop builds into refractory moldmaking geared specifically toward hot casting. As work comes out of the annealer, we'll cover foundational finishing and coldworking approaches for cast objects. Open to all skill levels — no prior experience required.
Artist Biography: Cooper O'Brien’s sculptural practice is a correspondence with his career in glassmaking. Built on reevaluating the mechanisms of moldmaking and kilnforming, his work finds what they yield when recalibrated toward the unexpected. O'Brien holds an MFA from the Tyler School of Art and Architecture and a BFA from RISD, and has taught and been in residence at institutions including UrbanGlass and Pilchuck Glass School. As a fabricator, O'Brien has realized work for artists such as Karen LaMonte, Hank Murta Adams, Trevor Paglen, and Lorna Simpson. He lives and works in rural Maryland.
Class is limited to 9 individuals total.
42 hours total of class time.
Foci MCGA Cancellation and Refund Policy
This educational service is nontaxable. Eligible for Membership discount.
Schema, 2021. cast glass, copper, steel, wood, brass
Poured Over, 2012. cast glass
Troglodyte’s Wall (after Oelze), 2016. cast glass
Untitled (detail), 2022. cast glass, copper, steel, aluminum
All Recurring Glassblowing Classes Offered:
Intensive Core Classes
Intro to Glassblowing, 6 week class, offered quarterly. No experience required.
Refining Fundamentals, 6 week class, offered biannually. Prerequisite: Intro to Glassblowing.
Intermediate Glassblowing, 6 week class, offered quarterly. Prerequisite: Intro to Glassblowing.
Color Application, 4 week class, offered fall and spring. Prerequisite: Intermediate Glassblowing.
Cane Techniques, 4 week class, offered semiannually. Prerequisite: Intermediate Glassblowing.
Venetian Techniques, 6 week class, offered annually. Prerequisite: Intermediate Glassblowing.
Visiting Artist Workshops, 5 day intensive class, offered annually in winter (prerequisite is dependent on curriculum).
One Day Tech Sessions
How to Blow Glass Solo, one day tech session, offered annually. Prerequisite: Intro to Glassblowing.
Pumpkin Tech Session, one day tech session, offered annually. Prerequisite: Intro to Glassblowing.
Ornament Tech Session, one day tech session, offered annually. Prerequisite: Intro to Glassblowing.
Other Programming
Glassblowing Open Studio, one day session, offered year round every Third Thursday of each month in the Spring, Fall, and Winter. Prerequisite: Intro to Glassblowing.
We strive to offer new and exciting classes and workshop each year. If you are interested in a specific technique, please inquire at contact@mnglassart.org.
Class Release Schedule:
Q1 Winter Core Classes: held January-March. Enrollment opens by November 1st. Scholarships for this quarter are due December 1st - apply here!
Q2 Spring Core Classes: held April-June. Enrollment opens by February 1st. Scholarships for this quarter are due March 1st - apply here!
Q3 Summer Core Classes: held July-September. Enrollment opens by May 1st. Scholarships for this quarter are due June 1st - apply here!
Q4 Fall Core Classes: held October-December. Enrollment opens by August 1st. Scholarships for this quarter are due September 1st - apply here!
Scholarship Opportunities: Find out more or apply here!
Looking for our brief One-Day Glass Art Experiences? Check out our current Glass Discovery offerings here.