Dale Chihuly

Dale Chihuly /tʃɪˈhuːli/ (born September 20, 1941) is an American glass sculptor and entrepreneur. His works are considered to possess outstanding artistic merit in the field of blown glass, "moving it into the realm of large-scale sculpture."[2] The technical difficulties of working with glass forms are considerable, yet Chihuly uses it as the primary medium for installations and environmental artwork.

Dale Chihuly
Chihuly in 1992
Born
Dale Patrick Chihuly

(1941-09-20) September 20, 1941
Tacoma, Washington, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
Education
University of Washington
Known forGlass artist
Spouse(s)
Leslie Jackson
​
(m. 2005)​
[1]

Early life

Dale Patrick Chihuly was born on September 20, 1941, in Tacoma, Washington.[3] His parents were George and Viola Chihuly; his paternal grandfather was born in Slovakia.[3] In 1956, his older brother and only sibling, George, died in a Navy aviation training accident in Pensacola, Florida.[4] Two years later, in 1958, Chihuly's father died of a heart attack at the age of 51.[5][6]

Chihuly had no interest in continuing his formal education after graduating from Woodrow Wilson High School in 1959. However, at his mother's urging, he enrolled at the College of Puget Sound[6] A year later, he transferred to the University of Washington in Seattle to study interior design. In 1961, he joined the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity (Kappa Epsilon chapter), and the same year he learned how to melt and fuse glass.[4] Chihuly became bored with his studies, and in 1962 he dropped out of the university to study art in Florence. He later traveled to the Middle East where he met architect Robert Landsman. Their meeting and his time abroad spurred Chihuly to return to his studies. In 1963, he took a weaving class where he incorporated glass shards into tapestries. He received an award for his work from the Seattle Weavers Guild in 1964.[4] Chihuly graduated from the University of Washington in 1965 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in interior design.[6]

Chihuly began experimenting with glassblowing in 1965, and in 1966 he received a full scholarship to attend the University of Wisconsin–Madison.[4] He studied under Harvey Littleton, who had established the first glass program in the United States at the university. In 1967, Chihuly received a Master of Science degree in sculpture. After graduating, he enrolled at the Rhode Island School of Design, where he met and became close friends with Italo Scanga. Chihuly earned a Master of Fine Arts degree in sculpture from the RISD in 1968. That same year, he was awarded a Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation grant for his work in glass, as well as a Fulbright Fellowship.[4] He traveled to Venice to work at the Venini factory on the island of Murano, where he first saw the team approach to blowing glass.[7] After returning to the United States, Chihuly spent the first of four consecutive summers teaching at the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Deer Isle, Maine. In 1969, he traveled to Europe, in part to meet Erwin Eisch in Germany and Stanislav Libenský and Jaroslava Brychtová in Czechoslovakia.[4] Chihuly donated a portion of a large exhibit to his alma mater, the University of Wisconsin, in 1997 and it is on permanent display in the Kohl Center. In 2013 the University awarded him a Honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts.

Career
Chihuly at Kew Gardens

In 1971, with the support of John Hauberg and Anne Gould Hauberg, Chihuly cofounded the Pilchuck Glass School near Stanwood, Washington. Chihuly also founded the HillTop Artists program in Tacoma, Washington at Jason Lee Middle School and Wilson High School.

In 1976, while Chihuly was in England, he was involved in a head-on car accident during which he was propelled through the windshield.[8] His face was severely cut by glass and he was blinded in his left eye. After recovering, he continued to blow glass until he dislocated his right shoulder in 1979 while bodysurfing. No longer able to hold the glassblowing pipe, he hired others to do the work. Chihuly explained the change in a 2006 interview, saying "Once I stepped back, I liked the view," and pointed out that it allowed him to see the work from more perspectives and enabled him to anticipate problems earlier. Chihuly's role has been described as "more choreographer than dancer, more supervisor than participant, more director than actor."[1] San Diego Union-Tribune reporter Erin Glass wrote that she "wonders at the vision of not just the artist Chihuly, but the very successful entrepreneur Chihuly, whose estimated sales by 2004 was reported by The Seattle Times as $29 million."[9] Chihuly and his team of artists were the subjects of the documentary Chihuly Over Venice. They were also featured in the documentary Chihuly in the Hotshop, syndicated to public television stations by American Public Television starting on November 1, 2008.[10]


2006 lawsuit

In 2006, Chihuly filed a lawsuit against his former longtime employee, glassblower Bryan Rubino, and businessman Robert Kaindl, claiming copyright and trademark infringement. Kaindl's pieces used titles Chihuly had employed for his own works, such as Seaforms and Ikebana, and resembled the construction of Chihuly's pieces. Arguments made by legal experts stated that influence on art style does not constitute copyright infringement.[11][12] Chihuly settled the lawsuit with Rubino initially,[13] and later with Kaindl as well.[14]

Works
Chihuly's The Sun was on temporary display until January 2006 at Kew Gardens
Yellow Chandelier at the Tower of David Museum 1999–2000

Regina Hackett, a Seattle Post-Intelligencer art critic, provided a chronology of Chihuly's work during the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s:

  • 1975: Navajo Blanket Series, in which patterns of Navajo blankets were painted onto glass
  • 1977: Northwest Coast Basket Series, baskets inspired by Northwest coast Indian baskets he had seen as a child
  • 1980: Seaform Series, transparent sculptures of thin glass, strengthened by ribbed strands of color
  • 1981: Macchia Series, featuring every color available in the studio
  • 1986: Persian Series, inspired by Middle East glass from the 12th- to 14th-century, featuring more restrained color and room-sized installations
  • 1988: Venetian Series, improvisations based on Italian Art Deco
  • 1989: Ikebana Series, glass flower arrangements inspired by ikebana
  • 1990: Venetian Series returns, this time in a more eccentric form
  • 1991: Niijima Floats, six-foot spheres of intricate color inspired by Japanese glass fishing floats from the island of Niijima[15] from Chihuly's website
  • 1992: Chandeliers, starting modestly but by the middle of the decade involving a ton of glass orbs and shapes that in some works look like flowers, others like breasts, and still others like snakes. Chihuly has also produced a sizable volume of "Irish cylinders",[16] which are more modest in conception than his blown glass works.

For his exhibition in Jerusalem, Israel in 2000, in addition to the glass pieces, he had enormous blocks of transparent ice brought in from an Alaskan artesian well and formed a wall, echoing the stones of the nearby Citadel. Lights with color gels were set up behind them for illumination. Chihuly said the melting wall represented the "dissolution of barriers" between people.[17] This exhibit holds the world record for most visitors to a temporary exhibit with more than 1.3 million visitors.[18]

Galleries

Chihuly's largest permanent exhibit can be found at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art. Chihuly maintains two retail stores in partnership with MGM Resorts International. One is located at the Bellagio on the Las Vegas Strip,[19] the other at the MGM Grand Casino in Macau.[20] A number of other galleries also carry his pieces. He also has a gallery in Las Vegas in the Crystals in the Las Vegas City Center in Gallery Row. In 1983 Chihuly returned to his native Pacific Northwest where he continued to develop his own work at the Pilchuck Glass School, which he had helped to found in 1971. Throughout the 1970s, influenced by the great glassblowing tradition of Murano, Chihuly experimented with the team approach to glassblowing. Working with a team of master glassblowers and assistants has enabled him to produce architectural glass art of a scale and quantity unimaginable working alone or with only one assistant. In 2010 the Space Needle Corporation submitted a proposal for an exhibition of Chihuly's work at a site in the Seattle Center, in competition with proposals for other uses from several other groups.[21][22] The project, which sees the new Chihuly exhibition hall occupy the site of the former Fun Forest amusement park in the Seattle Center park and entertainment complex, received the final green light from the Seattle City Council on April 25, 2011.[23] Called Chihuly Garden and Glass, it opened May 21, 2012.[24][25]

Exhibitions

Permanent collections
Further information: List of works by Dale Chihuly

Chihuly's art appears in permanent collections all over the world, including in the United States (The Chihuly Collection housed in its own building on Central Ave in St Petersburg, Florida), Canada, England, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, and Kuwait.

Recognition

In 1994, he received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement.[57]

In 2006, he received the American Craft Council’s Gold Medal.[58]

In 2011, he received the Fritz Redlich Alumni Award of the Institute of International Education.[59]

References
  1. Hackett, Regina (18 April 2006). "Chihuly victimized by his own success?". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Archived from the original on 20 September 2017. Retrieved 23 October 2017.
  2. "Chihuly: Through the looking glass". Museum of Fine Arts Boston. Archived from the original on 24 December 2011. Retrieved 23 October 2017.
  3. "Dale Chihuly – Legendary Master of Glass". Northwest Prime Time. 1 May 2013. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
  4. Kuspit, Donald B. (1998). Chihuly (2nd ed.). Seattle: Harry N. Abrams, Inc.
  5. "Renowned Glass Artist's Mother Dies at 98". Spokesman.com. Spokane Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
  6. Chihuly, Dale. "Timeline". Chihuly.com. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
  7. "Learn More". Chihuly. Chihuly Studio. Archived from the original on 19 October 2014. Retrieved 23 October 2014. From his personal website.
  8. Graves, Jen (February 2006). "Glass Houses: Dale Chihuly Files a Lawsuit That Raises Big Questions... About Dale Chihuly". The Stranger. Archived from the original on 27 November 2011. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
  9. Glass, Erin (22 April 2010). "'Chihuly' a site-specific explosion of art at Salk". San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on 30 July 2016.
  10. "Chihuly Over Venice". Chihuly.com. Retrieved 25 October 2017.
  11. "Glass warfare". St. Petersburg Times. 2006-06-11. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  12. O'Hagan, Maureen (2005-12-20). "Glass artist Chihuly's lawsuit tests limits of copyrighting art". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  13. Sheila Farr and Susan Kelleher (2006-08-15). "Artists Chihuly, Rubino settle claims; suit against entrepreneur unresolved". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on 2012-10-20. Retrieved 2010-02-25.
  14. Kelleher, Susan (2006-12-19). Chihuly, rival glass artist settle dispute. The Seattle Times. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  15. "Chihuly - Niijima". 18 November 2010. Archived from the original on 18 November 2010.
  16. Archived June 27, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  17. Cohen, Jay (4 October 1999). "Cooling a hotbed of unrest in Mideast?". Deseret News. Retrieved 1 March 2010.
  18. "Jerusalem 2000". www.tod.org.il.
  19. "List of stores". Bellagio.com. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  20. Press release by MGM Macau mentioning Chihuly shop (search for "Chihuly retail") Archived March 19, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
  21. Heffter, Emily (10 June 2010), "Chihuly glass museum proposed at Seattle Center where Fun Forest stood", Seattle Times, archived from the original on 12 March 2010
  22. Heffter, Emily (10 June 2010), "In a second attempt to sell the city and the public on a Dale Chihuly glass exhibit at Seattle Center", Seattle Times, archived from the original on 2010-06-13
  23. Davis, Ben (28 April 2011). "Divisive Dale Chihuly Glass-Art 'Museum' Approved for Former Seattle Amusement Park". ArtInfo. Retrieved 30 November 2012.
  24. "Chihuly Garden and Glass Opens with Dedication Ceremony on Monday, May 21". PRNewswire. 21 May 2012. Retrieved 30 November 2012.
  25. Riefe, Jordan (21 May 2012). "Dale Chihuly's 'Glass House' Shines in Seattle". Reuters. Retrieved 30 November 2012.
  26. "Chihuly Over Venice". Chihuly.com. Archived from the original on November 20, 2010.
  27. "Dale Chihuly - Artist - Chihuly in the Light of Jerusalem 2000". Chihuly.com. Archived from the original on 2010-11-18. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  28. Hawkins Opie, Jennifer, ed. (2001). Chihuly at the V&A. V&A Publications in association with Portland Press.
  29. "Glass Master". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved 2014-11-12.
  30. Archived February 11, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  31. James Morley (2006-01-15). "Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew: Current events: Gardens of glass: Chihuly at Kew: The Exhibition". Rbgkew.org.uk. Archived from the original on 30 March 2009. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  32. "Art : Modern and Contemporary American Art | Kalamazoo Institute of Arts (KIA)". Kiarts.org. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  33. Archived November 19, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  34. "Calendar". Mobot.org. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  35. http://oisterwijksculptuur.nl/index.php?id=108
  36. "CHIHULY Exhibition » New York Botanical Garden". New York Botanical Garden. Archived from the original on September 29, 2006.
  37. "Baylor University || Mayborn Museum | FINAL WEEKS! Wrapped in Tradition: The Chihuly Collection of American Indian Trade Blankets". www.baylor.edu. Retrieved 2017-05-25.
  38. "Chihuly at Phipps". Retrieved 2015-02-06.
  39. "chihulyatthedeyoung.org". chihulyatthedeyoung.org. Archived from the original on 26 May 2019. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  40. "Visit the Desert Botanical Garden | Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix, AZ". Dbg.org. 2012-10-05. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  41. Archived December 23, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  42. "The Phil in Naples". Thephil.org. Archived from the original on 2013-01-14. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  43. "Cheekwood Estate & Gardens in Nashville". Cheekwood Estate & Gardens | Nashville, Tennessee. Archived from the original on August 19, 2010.
  44. "Chihuly at the Salk". Salk.edu. Archived from the original on 19 March 2012. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  45. "Chihuly at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park: A New Eden". MeijerGardens.org. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
  46. "Chihuly | Museum of Fine Arts, Boston". Mfa.org. 10 April 2011. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  47. "Chihuly". Dallasarboretum.org. Archived from the original on 2012-11-15. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  48. "VMFA: At The Museum: Chihuly at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts". Vmfa.state.va.us. 2012-10-20. Archived from the original on 21 December 2012. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
  49. "VMFA: Chihuly at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Montreal". mbam.qc.ca. 2013-06-23. Archived from the original on 2013-07-05. Retrieved 2013-06-22.
  50. "Chihuly in the Garden Exhibition". Desert Botanical Garden. Desert Botanical Garden. Retrieved 21 October 2014.
  51. "Chihuly Denver". Denver Botanic Gardens. Visit Denver. Retrieved 21 October 2014.
  52. "Chihuly Venetians". Archived from the original on 2016-01-20.
  53. Kang, Yoon (31 March 2016). "CHIHULY". Retrieved 2016-07-26.
  54. "Chihuly in the Garden". Retrieved 27 September 2016.
  55. "CHIHULY » New York Botanical Garden". New York Botanical Garden. Retrieved 25 May 2017.
  56. "Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew - What's on - Chihuly: Reflections on nature". kew.org. 2019-04-13.
  57. "Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement". www.achievement.org. American Academy of Achievement.
  58. "American Craft Council's Gold Medal".
  59. "Fritz Redlich Alumni Award".

Further reading

Bibliography
  • Chihuly Over Venice by William Warmus and Dana Self. Seattle: Portland Press, 1996.
  • Chihuly by Donald Kuspit. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1998.
  • The Essential Dale Chihuly by William Warmus. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 2000.
  • Dale Chihuly:365 Days. Margaret L. Kaplan, Editor. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 2008.
  • Chihuly Drawing, illustrated by Chihuly, with an essay by Nathan Kernan. Portland Press, 2003, ISBN 1-57684-019-0
  • Warmus, William; Oldknow, Tina (2020). Venice and American Studio Glass. Milan: Skira. ISBN 9788857243870.
Library resources about
Dale Chihuly
By Dale Chihuly
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