Chihuly Glass

Chandelier from SJ Museum of Art

Being the total nerds that we are, The Serene One and I spent two hours watching a documentary on Dale Chihuly, the famous glass artist. I've only seen his work in person twice: the Bellagio flowered ceiling, and three chandeliers at the San Jose Museum of Art.

The documentary followed him to different glass factories around the world like the Waterford factory in Ireland and the island of Murano in Italy. Each factory provided a place to work and local glassblowing talent. Chihuly and his own team added their style, expertise and awesome colors.

In Venice
Photo from Chihuly website

It was so fun to see the glass being blown and shaped as a team, at high speeds and with so much skill. I love the organic feeling of his work. It seems very natural to find his stuff peeking at you from within foliage and bobbing in water. Glass forming has been around for centuries, but Chihuly is known for his weird shapes, big scale and amazing use of colors.

In talking about why his work seems so fresh, he said that for many generations the goal has been perfection through symmetry and specific lines. Creating an original piece is harder because there are so many more decision points in the production process. Of course, from an Industrial Engineering point of view, it also means that you can't have interchangeable parts either. Let's not go there for now.

Tower at Garfield Conservatory in Chicago
Photo from Chihuly website

The chandeliers and towers that he does are really cool. But I am so amazed by the lap pool he built. It seems like you could experience the art so much better in a liquid medium. Check it out here.

I also found this cool site of a guy who got to tour Chihuly's Boathouse Studio in Seattle, Washington. It even has a secret location!!