The Mile High City felt a little headier in March as the most passionate collectors and celebrated makers in contemporary glassmaking converged for the second annual Marble Conference. What began last year as a promising debut returned to Denver in 2026, with nearly twice as many attending artists and a huge outpouring of support from the broader glass community.
Known affectionately as “MIBCON,” the two-day gathering at Void Studios featured a dynamic lineup of events celebrating modern glass culture. At the heart of it all was the Marble Market: a lively, farmers-market-style bazaar where avid collectors and curious newcomers alike could browse work from some of the most sought-after names in the scene. There were also tons of different ways to engage with artists beyond their booths, from a charity auction to high-energy marble races and even a hidden marble hunt around the venue and surrounding areas.
The artist roster truly showed out. Colorado standouts like Eusheen and N8 Miers, who operate out of Everdream Studio up in the mountains of Evergreen, were joined by an impressive lineup of visiting talent. Among them was Mike Gong, a past Oregon Leaf Glass Issue cover artist, and Kaj Beck, a murrine master from Humboldt County who has been crafting marbles since 1996.
Hanging out behind his table, covered with intricate millie slices and vividly patterned marbles of all sizes, Beck reflected on his first MIBCON experience.
“I always like the amount of variety when I come to a marble show like this. You get to see so many different styles on the same canvas. Everybody is working a sphere, but every table has something completely different,” he explained. This sense of range and individuality within a shared medium was definitely a common theme throughout the weekend.
Piper Dan, a Colorado local and OG of marble making, reflected on his own personal journey and evolution in the craft. Starting on the torch in 1995 and getting into marbles just two years later, he recalls those early days with a fond laugh. Marbles were simply “easier to sell on lot and bring into shows” than larger functional pieces. What started more as a matter of practicality has since blossomed into a thriving subculture.
Today, these marbles function far beyond just art objects; they’ve become personal talismans that are valued equally for their meaning as they are for their visual appeal. Avid collectors integrate them into their daily lives, bringing them along to concerts or running them under fresh water on nature adventures. Some simply carry them in their pocket, or a super heady pouch, because they feel it brings them a bit of luck or intention, similar to a crystal.
A few personal standouts from this year’s show were Eusheen and Yoshinori Kondo’s epic marble collab, which sparkled so bright that I nearly needed sunglasses, and Jen Stark’s highly anticipated first release of flameworked glass pieces. I was beyond stoked to score a pill made by ENS Glass out of Texas that features a trippy take on Stark’s signature rainbow patterns. Whether you gravitate toward geometric shapes and nature-inspired patterns or like to get lost in a fully-worked window to another world, there was truly a style for everyone to appreciate.
If this year’s MIBCON turnout (and the palpable excitement among artists and collectors) is any indication, the event reflects a broader shift in the glass scene. It marks a move away from viewing marbles as simple, nostalgic objects and toward recognizing them as an innovative, highly technical art form. And this art form is shaping the future of glassmaking — one sphere at a time.
