Chihuly 2021 by Schantz Galleries Contemporary Glass

CHIHULY

2021

SCHANTZ GALLERIES 1

COVER:

Golden Metallic Celadon Soft Cylinder 2019 20 x 17 x 16 inches (detail previous spread)

CHIHULY 2021

Schantz Galleries contemporary

glass

LOOKING BACK, we remember fondly the CHIHULY 2019 exhibition in Stockbridge as one of the most visited exhibitions in the history of our gallery, with more than 4500 visitors in August. WE LOOK FORWARD to the promise of future exhibitions in the gallery, but in the meantime, we curated this body of work to present new and archival works by Dale Chihuly. This collection reflects the diversity of Chihuly’s work and revisits some of our favorite series: Seaforms, Soft Cylinders, Venetians, and the technically challenging Rotolo. This format gives us the opportunity to virtually showcase two fantastic Chandeliers and two wonderful Persian Wall installations. Chihuly’s creative energy is captured in his Drawings and Light Drawings, pieces which reflect the different phases of the artist’s career. For this presentation, we have reserved a selection of Drawings previously exhibited at museums. These works on paper led to his Light Drawings, an expression of Chihuly’s interest in the transmission of color and light through transparent media. For decades Chihuly’s work in public places, museums and gardens has brought people and communities together. Whether in Venice, Jerusalem, London or Sydney, his creative process shines through, igniting our imaginations with beauty and possibility. His visionary and innovative approach to materials has transformed the glass community in Seattle and brought awareness to the art form globally. We remain grateful for the power of community and the arts to reveal and celebrate our humanity. We are thrilled to represent Dale Chihuly’s work and to share this special collection with you.

Jim Schantz and Kim Saul April, 2021 7

VENETIANS

The vivacious Venetian series began after Chihuly visited Venice in 1987–88 and saw Art Deco Venetian gl and 1930s. Chihuly says he “started the series with the simple idea of replicating these strange Art Deco vase it would go somewhere else, somewhere bizarre.” The result is classical vessels adorned with ornate and d and flourishes. Works named Piccolo Venetian are, true to the meaning of the Italian word, smaller interpreta

Transparent Turquoise Venetian with Lilies 1991 25 x 13 x 13 inches (detail, next)

lass vases from the 1920s es, but [he] hoped that daring appendages ations of the style.

Spotted Misty Jade Piccolo Venetian with Rose Pearl Curls 1999 11 x 7 x 5 inches (detail, next)

Dappled Cobalt Venetian with Topaz Prunts 2002 13 x 16 x 16 inches (detail, next)

Gilded Old Rose Piccolo Venetian with Rose Coils, Flowers and Leaf 2013 15 x 6 x 6 inches (detail, next)

Deep Ocean Green Piccolo Venetian 1998 12 x 11 x 5 inches (detail, next)

Venetian Drawing 2009 30 x 22 inches

SEAFORMS

The Seaforms evolved from the Baskets and use optic molds to strengthen the glass and produce the ribbed effect. Organic and billowy forms of striated glass nest naturally together. Some display the eye-catching colors of a bountiful coral reef, while others have the ethereal transparency of a rare jelly fish. Chihuly wrote that he loves “to go to the ocean and walk along the beach. If you work with hot glass and its natural properties, it begins to look like something that came from the sea.” A grouping of Seaforms are presented at the Monterey Bay Aquarium in a gorgeous exhibition described by Chihuly as “a menagerie of oversized, blown-glass celebrating creatures of the sea.”

Alabaster and Pink Seaform Set with Jet Black Lip Wraps 2000 10 x 22 x 13 inches

Brilliant Red and Yellow Seaform Set 2000 14 x 27 x 18 inches (detail, next)

New York Experimental Glass Workshop Drawing 1994 30 x 42 inches

PERSIAN WALLS

The Persians began as a search for new forms, and Chihuly worked for over a year experimenting with thousands of different shapes from which he ultimately developed the series. The ribbony edges of the Persians undulate and fold, resulting in a whirl of patterns and shapes in bold asymmetry. According to Chihuly, “molten glass, ringed by linear wraps, is plunged into [ribbed optic molds] to create repetitive patterns. When blown out, the bubbles are transformed into swirling, irregularly shaped rondels with fascinating details.” The Persian Walls group these brightly colored and wildly shaped forms in breathtaking installations.

Blue Waters Persian Wall 2019 45 x 94 x 15 inches (detail, next)

Emerald and Citrine Persian Wall 2018 41 x 94 x 15 inches (detail, next)

IKEBANA

Stemming out of the Venetian series, the Ikebana sculptures honor the meditative simplicity and st intentionality that define the Japanese floral arranging tradition of the same name, in which a few twigs, lea or long-stemmed blossoms are carefully and harmoniously placed in a vessel. While the Ikebana bring fanciful version of nature to indoor settings, Chihuly is also known for placing the sculptures in gardens and conservatories to “bring a sense of fantasy to their natural surroundings.” Their often-outsized dimensions, captivating directness, and improbable forms contribute to this drama.

Gilded Cobalt Ikebana with Magenta Stems 2000 59 x 38 x 24 inches (detail, next)

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Ikebana Drawing 2008 30 x 22 inches

Copper Ikebana Drawing 2007 30 x 22 inches

LIGHT DRAWINGS

The layered forms of Chihuly’s works on paper are achieved not just through drawing, but through dripping, smudging, and otherwise manipulating media and materials in unconventional ways. Expressive gestures are enhanced with bold and vivid colors. In the Light Drawings, the paint is applied to acrylic glass and lit from behind, illuminating and amplifying the numerous elements of the composition. The result is a contemporary and whimsical interpretation of stained glass, something which inspired Chihuly as a young man traveling through Europe.

Ikebana Light Drawing 2017 50 x 40 inches

Ikebana Light Drawing 2019 50 x 40 inches

SOFT CYLINDERS

The Soft Cylinders marry two earlier series in beguiling pieces whose delicate designs ripple around cu vessels. With the Cylinders, one of Chihuly’s earliest series, threads of glass become shard drawings wh then picked up by a molten bubble of glass to create expressionistic patterns reminiscent of Navajo blan The influence of Chihuly’s love of Native American form and design is also evident in his renowned Bas series, characterized by an easy, almost liquid suppleness. In applying the shard drawings of the Cylinder to the irregular forms of the Baskets, Chihuly forges a remarkable juxtaposition between the soft folds of a magnificent textile and the hard qualities of cooled glass.

Sienna Yellow Soft Cylinder with Ruby Lip Wrap 2014 17 x 17 x 15 inches (detail, next)

urvaceous hich are nkets. sket rs

Navy Soft Cylinder with Goldenrod Lip Wrap 2014 16 x 16 x 15 inches (detail, next)

ROTOLO

Chihuly has said that the “Rotolo rekindled my excitement for working with clear glass. [I] was really amazed b and brilliance of the form, which started from a simple coil.” The buoyancy of the finished sculptures belies weight of the pieces (the title of each Rotolo—Italian for “coil”—contains its weight in pounds) and the effo execute it. Up to seventeen team members work together to push the glass to its limits, spiraling molten glass a metal poles then bringing the coils together in thoughtful compositions. Just moving these heavy pieces in an the glory hole is quite a feat and each step of the process, up to the slow cooling of the piece in the annealin over several days, is filled with risk.

Rotolo 78 2016 41 x 18 x 17 inches (detail, next)

by the complexity s the incredible ort required to around long nd out of ng oven

CHANDELIERS

Chihuly’s Chandeliers are elaborate allusions to those grand and luminous pendants of light. They are found in both indoor and outdoor spaces and take on many forms, two of which are shown here. Lumière Blue Chandelier is a grouping of theatrical tangles of irregularly shaped coils, while Golden Umber Icicle Chandelier is an imposing globe of differently sized icicles. Chihuly is uniquely mindful of the integration of his artwork with its environment, designing installations such as the Chandeliers to reflect and enhance their settings. Assembling hundreds of blown glass elements on such a grand scale is a breathtaking feat which results in a truly immersive light and color experience.

Lumière Blue Chandelier 2013 60 x 64 x 63 inches (detail, next)

Golden Umber Icicle Chandelier 2015 66 x 50 x 48 inches (detail, next)

WORKS ON PAPER

Though Chihuly’s works on paper began in the 1970s to illustrate his ideas to glassblowers, they have become every bit an art form as the glass itself. These spontaneous drawings are energetic interpretations of shape, color, and mark making in sweeping gestures which seemingly leap off the page. Liquid acrylics in plastic squeeze bottles allow him to experiment more freely with the application of the material and precipitate effects ranging from circles to splashes, dots to lines. He also incorporates watercolor, ink pencil, charcoal, graphite, and fire in the drawings, and uses unusual tools such as brooms, or the bottoms of the bottles of paint. Concentrated colors—sultry reds, neon greens, cerulean blues, hot pinks—infuse the surface with such boundless energy the confines of the paper struggle to contain them.

Chihuly Over Venice Drawing 1996 42 x 30 inches

San Jose Drawing 1995 42 x 30 inches

Burned Basket Drawing 2009 30 x 22 inches

Float and Reed Drawing 2008 30 x 22 inches

Chihuly Over Venice Drawing 1996 42 x 30 inches

Basket Drawing 2013 42 x 30 inches

Born in 1941 in Tacoma, Washington, Dale Chihuly was introduced to glass while studying interior design at the University of Washington. After graduating in 1965, Chihuly enrolled in the first glass program in the country, at the University of Wisconsin. He continued his studies at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), where he later established the glass program and taught for more than a decade. In 1968, after receiving a Fulbright Fellowship, he went to work at the Venini glass factory in Venice. There he observed the team approach to blowing glass, which is critical to the way he works today. In 1971, Chihuly cofounded Pilchuck Glass School in Washington State. With this international glass center, Chihuly has led the avant-garde in the development of glass as a fine art. His work is included in more than 200 museum collections worldwide. He has been the recipient of many awards, including twelve honorary doctorates and two fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts. Chihuly has created more than a dozen well-known series of works, among them, Cylinders and Baskets in the 1970s; Seaforms, Macchia, Persians, and Venetians in the 1980s; Niijima Floats and Chandeliers in the 1990s; Fiori in the 2000s. He is also celebrated for large architectural installations. In 1986, he was honored with a solo

exhibition, Dale Chihuly: objets de verre, at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Palais du Louvre, Paris. In 1995, he began Chihuly Over Venice, for which he created sculptures at glass factories in Finland, Ireland, Mexico, and Italy, then installed them over the canals and piazzas of Venice. In 1999, Chihuly started an ambitious exhibition, Chihuly in the Light of Jerusalem; more than 1 million visitors attended the Tower of David Museum to view his installations. In 2001, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London curated the exhibit Chihuly at the V&A. Chihuly’s lifelong fascination with glasshouses has grown into a series of exhibitions within botanical settings. His Garden Cycle began in 2001 at the Garfield Park Conservatory in Chicago. Chihuly exhibited at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, near London, in 2005. Other major exhibition venues include the de Young Museum in San Fransico in 2008 and 2019; the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, in 2011; and the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, in 2013. Chihuly Garden and Glass, a long-term exhibition, opened at Seattle Center in 2012.

Dale Chihuly The Hotshop, The Boathouse Seattle, 1993

CHIHULY 2021

Schantz Galleries contemporary

glass

3 Elm Street Stockbridge, MA 01262 (413) 298-3044 www.schantzgalleries.com 93

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