Awards

AWARD CATEGORIES

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The Board of Directors of the AGG seeks nominations from its members for the 2025 awards in the following categories:

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Members should send their nominations to info@americanglassguild.org, with “AGG Award Nomination” in the subject line. Please include several paragraphs about the person you are nominating and why you feel they deserve to be honored.  Award will be presented at the American Glass Guild Conference.

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The AGG Joseph Barnes Award was established by the American Glass Guild in 2008 and is a service award presented to individuals who serve the glass community with a kindness toward others and an enthusiasm for the glass industry.  Artists, conservators, craftspeople, art historians, etc., are eligible.

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The AGG Nicholas Parrendo Lifetime Achievement Award was established in 2013 and acknowledges distinguished accomplishment and service over the whole of a career by those in the stained-glass field.   Recipients inspire us with their vision, achievement, standards and leadership.  Artists, conservators, craftspeople, art historians, etc., are eligible.

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The AGG Inspiration Award was established in 2014 and is awarded to individuals or groups finding creative ways of promoting stained glass within their communities or to the general public. It honors individuals or groups that have made a difference in their own life and have inspired others along the way.

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The AGG Excellence in Conservation Award was established in 2009 and is awarded to individuals who strive for high standards in the field of conservation.  It is an opportunity to highlight some of the incredible and innovative stained conservation successes, as well as recognize and thank stained glass artists for their hard work and dedication to saving past work.

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PAST AWARD RECIPIENTS

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​2025 - Roberto Rosa - Achievement Award for Excellence in Conservation

Since 1988, Roberto has been a leading advocate for the conservation of historic stained glass, combining exceptional craftsmanship with a commitment to preserving original materials whenever possible. Through his research, publications, lectures, and hands-on conservation work, he has helped advance the understanding of historic lead matrices and their importance to the long-term preservation of stained glass windows. Roberto is first stained glass conservator in the United States to receive accreditation from the Institute of Conservation (ICON). His conservation projects include stained glass windows in some of America's most significant religious, civic, and historic buildings.

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2018 – Robert Jayson - SA Bendhiem - AGG Nicholas Parrendo Lifetime Achievement Award

The oldest of the Jayson brothers, Robert has been with Bendheim since 1976 and served as President for four decades. With nearly 50 years of hands-on experience in specialty glass manufacturing, import, distribution, and application, his expertise spans our full range of glass products for the architectural and art glass industries. Today, he oversees Bendheim’s sustainability initiatives and guides the company’s administration and long-term strategic planning. Robert is the only American to have worked in Glashütte Lamberts of Germany, the worldwide leader in mouth-blown flat glass. As a working member in a glassblowing team, he studied the art of crafting blown glass sheets. In 2001, he spearheaded the creation of Bendheim Wall Systems, Bendheim’s exterior glass division and premier provider of engineered glass wall systems and facades. He was instrumental in the development of the largest channel glass installation in the U.S. - the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City, M.O.

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2018 - Sam Halstead - AGG Inspiration Award

Movie:Lighting the Way: The German Pioneers of Contemporary Stained Glass

Watch on YouTube

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2017 - Dennis & Janice Dailey - DHD Metals - Joseph Barnes Award

Dailey and his wife Janice of DHD Metals have worked with many restoration artists to reproduce the unusual dies necessary to restore the work of innovators such as John La Farge and Louis Comfort Tiffany, always with a smile and positive attitude. Their dedication and love of stained glass drives their participation in the effort to create and restore it.

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2017 – Mary Clerkin Higgins - AGG Nicholas Parrendo Lifetime Achievement Award

Mary Clerkin Higgins is an artist and conservator who has worked in stained glass since 1976.
After completing a BA at Fordham University she undertook an apprenticeship with Melville Greenland at the renowned Greenland Studio in Manhattan, becoming one of the nation’s leading artists and conservators of stained glass. Her contemporary stained-glass has been selected for Corning Museum's prestigious New Glass Review and her conservation of stained glass from the twelfth to twenty-first centuries is in public and private collections in North America and Europe. Among the institutions that have turned to Ms. Higgins for her stained glass expertise are The Metropolitan Museum of Art and The Cloisters, Harvard, Stanford, Cornell, and Duke University; The Detroit Institute of Arts; The Brooklyn Museum, The Nasher Museum, The United Nations; The Neustadt Museum of Tiffany Glass, the Wolfsonian Museum, the Cloisters at Sea Island. Higgins wrote and lectured internationally on stained glass creation and conservation and was a Professional Associate of The American Institute for Conservation, and president of Clerkin Higgins Stained Glass, Inc., of Brooklyn, New York. One of the five founders of the American Glass Guild, Higgins was its president for two terms, program chair for three conferences, and is also founder and has served as organizer for five years of the juried show American Glass Now.

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2016 - Barbara Krueger - Joseph Barnes Award

Krueger poured much of her abundant energy into building the AGG community over its first 10 years.  Many know her as a mainstay of the AGG Bulletin Board, where she frequently posts articles of interest for discussion.  Krueger has been an integral part of, and now Director of, the Michigan Stained Glass Census

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2015 - Charles Z. Lawrence - Nicholas Parrendo Lifetime Achievement Award

Lawrence is widely respected for his achievement in architectural stained glass design, including installations at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, DC. He began his career in 1956 as an apprentice to master craftsman Rudolph Henrick Beunz. In the 1960s while attending design school at Pratt Institute, New York City, Lawrence worked in the glass department of the Rambusch Decorating Studio where he perfected skills in glass painting and color selection. In 1968 he went to work for the Willets Stained Glass studio in Chestnut Hill, where he completed prestigious commissions for the National Cathedral, the Temple of the Latter Day Saints, and the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC, as well as the University of Rochester, and Penn State University. In the 1980s Lawrence established his own studio in Mt. Airy, Philadelphia, completing additional commissions for the National Cathedral, as well as works for the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, St. Mary’s at the Cathedral, Andorra, PA, the Burlington Bridge Commission in NJ, and the Gore-Tex Manufacturing Co., in Cherry Hill, NJ.

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2014 - Peter McGrain - Joseph Barnes Award

McGrain has spent much of his career inspiring others through his enthusiastic teaching of the craft.  His method of combining stained glass painting and fusing, as well as his unique style of illustration, is known and appreciated by many in the field.

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2014 - Narcissus Qualiata - Nicholas Parrendo Lifetime Achievement Award 

Quagliata is internationally recognized for his design work in stained glass, and more his recently fused glass panels, and major architectural installations. He was Keynote Speaker at the 2014 AGG Conference in Bryn Athyn, PA.

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2014 - The Stained Glass Project: Windows That Open Doors - AGG Inspiration Award

The Stained Glass Project is a not-for-profit outreach program serving disadvantaged high school youth in Philadelphia, PA (www.facebook.com/TheStainedGlassProject).  Its after-school program serves teens by providing a family-like environment and mentoring while teaching basic stained glass crafting.  Windows made by the teens are then donated and installed at needy schools and other locales around the country and across the globe.

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2013 - Jack Cushen - Nicholas Parrendo Lifetime Achievement Award 

Jack was widely respected in the American stained glass conservation community as a master craftsman specializing in the restoration and conservation of historic stained glass windows rather than the design of new windows. He spent decades preserving important ecclesiastical and civic stained glass, particularly in the northeastern United States. He operated his own restoration studio, Jack Cushen Studio, and later associated with Studio Restorations, focusing on conservation of historic stained glass. His work emphasized retaining original material whenever possible rather than replacing it. He was an early and influential member of the American Glass Guild, serving as a Senior Advisor and helping mentor younger conservators. When he died in December 2022, the Guild honored him as someone who embodied its ideals of sharing knowledge and craftsmanship. One documented project was the restoration of a famous stained glass panel by John La Farge at the Thomas Crane Public Library in Massachusetts. His studio restored the “Old Philosopher” window in 1988, work that remained important decades later when the panel was temporarily stolen and recovered.  
Influence on other studios – Several prominent conservators and artists trained or worked at the Jack Cushen Studio during their careers, reflecting its reputation as an important training ground for restoration specialists. Within the stained glass community, Jack Cushen was generally regarded as one of the finest American restoration craftsmen of his generation. His reputation was built less on creating new artistic windows and more on his technical mastery of conserving historic glass with minimal intervention—a philosophy that aligns closely with modern conservation ethics.

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2013 - Crosby Willet - Nicholas Parrendo Lifetime Achievement Award 

 

2012 - Sylvia Nicolas - Joseph Barnes Award

Nicolas is a fourth generation master stained glass artist. Her father, Joep Nicolas, known as “the father of modern stained glass”, was also an accomplished painter, as is his daughter. Nicolas studied extensively in Europe, and in the U.S. with painter Rufino Tamayo and sculptor Ossip Zadkine. Her works range from stage sets and 24-foot high stained glass windows for churches to terra cotta sculptures that can be held in one hand. All bear the unmistakable stamp of excellence. Nicolas, also an accomplished costume designer and mosaicist, considers herself a keen observer of human nature. Her works delve into the passions, psychology and humor of the human condition, touching people with their universal appeal.

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2011 - Dan Fenton - Joseph Barnes Award

Over his forty years in glass, Fenton touched thousands of students, artists, colleagues and collectors with his deep generosity, intelligence, artistry, creativity and free spirit. It is for these myriad reasons that the American Glass Guild recognized Fenton for the Joseph Barnes Award. Dan embodied the same work ethic, love of his fellow man and dedication to the craft that we have all come to love in Joe Barnes.

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2010 - Rowan LeCompte - Joseph Barnes Award

LeCompte was recognized as AGG Senior Advisor, and for his many contributions to the art of stained glass. Rowan is best known for his extensive work at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. for which he made his first window at the age of 16. He created nearly 40 windows he created for the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. LeCompte grew up in Baltimore and drew much of his inspiration from discarded glass as well as geological visuals passed down from his elder brother in his studies as a scientist.  LeCompte used this inspiration to master the use of colors revealed by transmitted light, so that his windows presented their narrative imagery clearly in a large space. The Baptismal window at the Trinity College Chapel in Hartford and the Rose window at National Cathedral are two of his outstanding creations.

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2009 - Melville Greenland - Achievement Award for Excellence in Conservation

Greenland’s integrity and high standards in craftsmanship and conservation set the bar very high. He trained many well-known conservators and completed over 170 major commissions during his career. Greenland was a highly celebrated master conservator and creator of stained glass, best known for his Manhattan-based Greenland Studio Inc. Notable Projects and Restorations include the Cloisters & The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Washington National Cathedral (where he fabricated significant stained-glass pieces for the cathedral, including the Ruth and Naomi window designed by Rowan LeCompte, and the Church of St. Ann and the Holy Trinity. Greenland was widely respected for his strict, high-standard preservation methods. He has championed techniques like the copper-foil method to join breaks in stained glass, helping preserve historical glass paint and lead structures. Furthermore, he has shaped the industry by mentoring esteemed conservators, such as Mary Clerkin Higgins. 
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2009 - Nicholas Parrendo - Joseph Barnes Award

Parrendo, beloved AGG Senior Advisor, was recognized for his artistry in glass and his many years educating and encouraging other stained-glass artists. He delighted in presenting slide shows and lectures for various organizations and schools, taking the opportunity to encourage others to share in his passion for stained glass. He was a guest lecturer at several SGAA and AGG summer conferences as well as a master instructor of stained glass for the Life Long Learning Program of Carnegie Mellon University. He taught at the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; the Pioneer Crafts Council, Farmington, Pennsylvania; and at St. Michael’s Institute on Enders Island, Mystic, Connecticut.

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2008 - Joseph Barnes - Joseph Barnes Award

Barnes was the first recipient of an AGG Award, recognized for his many years of service to the field. He served as the unofficial “Chairman of the Board” of the Stained Glass Division at S.A. Bendheim, Co. in Passaic, NJ and earlier at Leo J. Popper and Sons in New York City.