Montreal: Chihuly Exhibit

In 2004 the Atlanta Botanical Gardens hosted an exhibit by an incredibly talented glass artist named Dale Chihuly.  I have trouble putting into words how beautiful his work is.  It is colorful, ornate, whimsical, and delicate.  He draws a great deal of inspiration from water and nature so his pieces have beautiful movement to the lines even though the pieces are stationary.  The installation in the gardens included hundreds of pieces; several really large installations mimicked plants and natural habitats.  I was in awe.  Even after the exhibit left the gardens kept a few select pieces as permanent exhibit pieces.  I enjoy looking at them every time I go.  So imagine my delight when I saw that the fine arts museum that was just four blocks from our hotel in Montreal was showing a Chihuly exhibit. 

It had been a long day of walking but I couldn't miss a chance to see more of his work.  The exhibit was divided into 5 rooms showcasing various forms of his glass. 

The first was a room with a Persian ceiling.  It was a glass ceiling with hundreds of blown glass pieces being displayed through the clear glass ceilings with light shining through from above.  The juxtaposition of the colored class and the wood beams was really striking.  I would love to mimic the idea in a house one day although it won’t be nearly as magnificent without the Chihuly glass pieces.  It reminded me of a kaleidoscope.  As you moved around the room your view was constantly changing and each view was as beautiful as the one before. 

The second room was dedicated to large scale chandelier pieces.  I was excited to see one my favorites again, the green piece was previously displayed in Atlanta in one of the green houses.  The others were all new to me and really beautiful.  The white one reminded me of the lines that you see when you look at the neck of a swan. 

The third room felt like visiting an undersea reef.  It was a large oval shaped installation that allowed viewers to walk around all sides of it.  It also like the first room offered a different take on the piece from every angle but it was beautiful no matter where you stood in the room.  It felt like Cirque du Soleil meets Finding Nemo and I spent a lot of time walking slowly around the piece in the room, trying to appreciate each vantage point.

The other rooms included large boats filled with blown glass pieces, an electric forest, and a variety of vases.  It was a beautiful and fairly large exhibit.  I enjoyed getting see some of the pieces I loved when I first saw Chihuly and admire new pieces of work as well.