Oklahoma City KEY - Cover Story

The Oklahoma City Museum of Art’s collection of glass by American artist Dale Chihuly reopened New Year’s Eve. Exhibited on the third floor, Illuminations: Rediscovering the Art of Dale Chihuly presents a fresh look at the Museum’s popular Chihuly collection. Redesigned in collaboration with Chihuly Studio, the newly installed galleries will incorporate a unique design that features a three-dimensional approach to viewing some objects in the collection. The presentation will allow visitors to explore the large Float Boat and Ikebana Boat installations from all sides as well as includes viewing slots for the Reeds.

Illuminations is accompanied by a special exhibition on the third floor titled Chihuly: Northwest. On view through April 8, this exhibition includes glass sculptures by Chihuly inspired by Native American baskets; Chihuly’s personal collection of Native American textiles as well as photographs by Edward S. Curtis from The North American Indian Portfolio; and recent examples of Chihuly’s White series.

In 2002, the Oklahoma City Museum of Art inaugurated the Donald W. Reynolds Visual Arts Center with an exhibition of glass and drawings by Dale Chihuly, titled Dale Chihuly: An Inaugural Exhibition. Bolstered by enormous public support, the Museum purchased the exhibition in June of 2004, which included works from Chihuly’s best-known series and was anchored by the 55-foot Eleanor Blake Kirkpatrick Memorial Tower in the Museum’s atrium.

Chihuly was commissioned to create one of his most elaborate pieces entitled the Eleanor Blake Kirkpatrick Memorial Tower. The 55-foot tall glass sculpture is Chihuly’s tallest creation and sits in a 14x14 foot black granite reflecting pool. The impressive multi-colored tower was created as a signature piece for the three-story atrium of the museum and is comprised of 2,400 individually hand-blown glass parts. The Tower is also visible from outside the museum, unmistakably declaring the building as a place for art.

Since, the collection has grown to include gifts to the Museum by the artist. Today, the Oklahoma City Museum of Art is home to one of the most comprehensive collections of Chihuly glass in the world.

Chihuly’s work is included in over 200 museum collections, including the Oklahoma City Museum of Art, and he has received world renown for his extensive glass series, international projects, and large architectural installations. The Museum’s collection represents over three decades of Chihuly’s finest work and heralds this brilliant luminist as the most important artist working in glass since Louis Comfort Tiffany.

About Dale Chihuly

Dale Chihuly’s well-grounded academic and practical background includes a B.A. in interior design from the University of Washington, a M.S. in sculpture from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, a M.F.A. in sculpture from the Rhode Island School of Design, and honorary doctorates from the University of Puget Sound and the Rhode Island School of Design. He also was awarded a Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation grant for work in glass and studied at Italy’s prestigious Venini glass factory on a Fulbright Fellowship.

Illuminations: Rediscovering the Art of Dale Chihuly Collection + Chihuly: Northwest celebrate the Museum’s 10th anniversary in the Donald W. Reynolds Visual Arts Center. The Oklahoma City Museum of Art is located in the heart of downtown Oklahoma City's Arts District, at 415 Couch Drive. Visit the Museum online at okcmoa.com, or call 405-236-3100 for additional information.

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