Southern Glass Works is hosting the 2026 Great Glass Pumpkin Patch Oct. 17 at SIU Carbondale. (Photo by Tamarah Cook)
October 08, 2026
Great Glass Pumpkin Patch returns to SIU Carbondale Oct. 17
CARBONDALE, Ill. — A fall tradition at Southern Illinois University Carbondale returns for its 21st year as students in the glass program sell glass pumpkins they designed and made themselves.
The Great Glass Pumpkin Patch runs from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, Oct. 17, on the lawn in front of the breezeway between Pulliam Hall and the Wham Education Building, 500 W. Grand Ave., just outside the glass studio.
Students make about 400 pumpkins each year. Organizers expect about 300 people from the local and regional community, and the line usually forms before the sale opens.
Pumpkins range from $50 to $200, with an average price of about $80. Payment is cash or credit cards only — checks will not be accepted this year. Admission is free, and visitor parking is available in the Morris Library parking lot.
New this year, the students will hold four raffles: two for “Make Your Own Glass Pumpkin” sessions and two for special-edition glass pumpkins.
Making connections
Students spend the morning on the lawn, talking with the people who picked out their pumpkins. For the artists, the Glass Pumpkin Patch is a chance to see who their work is going home with and to teach buyers a little about the craft.
“It’s one of our best connections to the community,” said Jiyong Lee, professor of art and head of the glass program. “Patrons ask about our new artist-in-residence, our recent field trips, and the students who made the pieces they’re taking home. Many want to know more about glass and how it’s made.”
Lee said that curiosity carries over into the glassblowing classes the program offers community members, which have become very popular.
The sale is hosted by Southern Glass Works, the glass art student organization in the School of Art and Design. Since 2006, sale proceeds have funded the Artist-in-Residence Program and the Visiting Artist Series, bringing more than 50 professional artists to campus from across the country and abroad.
Proceeds also support student conference travel, field trips and other activities that enrich their educational experience. Last spring, students attended the Glass Art Society conference in Corning, New York.
Artist-in-residence
This semester, Irish artist and educator Caroline Madden joins the glass program as its artist-in-residence. Madden lectures in the School of Fine Art at the National College of Art and Design in Dublin.
Madden served as head of 3D studios, glass, ceramics and sculpture at Jacksonville University in Florida from 1992 to 2006. She has taught workshops at Pilchuck Glass School, Pittsburgh Glass Center and UrbanGlass in the U.S., and at Fire Station Studios in Ireland.
Madden has exhibited internationally, and her work is in the collections of the National Museum of Ireland and the Ulster Museum in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Her permanent installations include “Cycles” at Lough Boora Parklands in Ireland and “Lyrical Light,” a collaborative work at the Florida Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts in Jacksonville.
She holds a doctorate in educational leadership from Barry University, a master’s degree in 3D sculpture from Massachusetts College of Art and a bachelor’s degree with honors in 3D design from Stourbridge College of Technology and Art in England.
Learn more
For more information, contact Jiyong Lee, head of the glass program, at jiyong@siu.edu.