I have often resented the total interpretation of the word talent. Yes, there are many talented people in the world in all different fields including art. I would rather interpret art as expression especially after going to the 2008 KY State Fair and seeing hundreds of works of art done by artistically inclined exhibitors ranging from small children right on up to old folks like myself and even beyond. Some had more talent than others, perhaps, but all, regardless of the age, style, medium or talent, all had expression as each had their own idea of what they wanted their art to represent.
Along with that thought I have always maintained that anyone can learn to create art just as they learn to do anything providing they learn the basics of the art craft they choose and apply it with daily practice sessions. Also I feel it is necessary to advance ones chosen field in any profession and in our current field of art I feel it is necessary to learn new things by taking workshops from people who can do something better than we can and by going to see exhibitions of other artists and crafters.
With that in mind, we, the two Artists of Avalon Stained Glass School went up to the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry in August 2008 to see the most incredible glass exhibition that was being hosted up there.
Every aspect of glass was being displayed and shown from old works of Tiffany, stained glass windows designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, fiber optics, bullet proof glass and more. Corning Glass of Corning NY had two young girls blowing glass and making incredible glass vessels. There was a whole section where people were creating stained glass windows. However, the most amazing exhibition was the works of world famous glass artist Dale Chihuly.
We saw Chihuly and his crew of 5 or 6 artisans blowing, rolling and throwing massive works of molten colored glass which were similar to the ones he created for the display in these photographs. More than 20 large, hand-blown colored glass sculptures had been constructed for the exhibit by Dale Chihuly. Each organically-shaped sculpture was placed on a pedestal of a varying height, filling the air with speckled, brilliantly colored pieces, giving the illusion of a glass forest. This 2,000 square foot Macchia Forest was accompanied by a short film that explained the scientific process that was involved with the external coloring of a glass object since the original piece of molten glass usually starts with clear and the colors are added by rolling the hot mass into colored pigments during the process and reheating, re-blowing, continually moving the blowing tube and repeating the process again and again until he gets what he wants to express. The display was breathtaking and understanding the procedure that was used to create such beauty just enhanced it.
Yes, Chihuly has talent, but he also has expression and has been practicing his art for over 40 years where he has stylistically created sculptures in glass that have explored color, line, and assemblage. Chilhuly's work ranges from the single vessel to indoor/outdoor site-specific installations. He is best known for his multipart blown compositions. These works fall into the categories of mini-environments designed for the tabletop as well as large, often serialized forms that are innovatively displayed in groupings on a wide variety of surfaces ranging from pedestals to bodies of natural water. Masses of these blown forms also have been affixed to specially engineered structures that dominate large exterior or interior spaces. His works can be seen all over the world.
From the early 1980's all of Chihuly's work has been marked by intense, vibrant color and by subtle linear decoration. At first he achieved patterns by fusing into the surface of his vessels "drawings" composed of prearranged glass threads; he then had his forms blown in optic molds, which created ribbed motifs. In the Macchia series he explored bold, colorful lip wraps that contrasted sharply with the brilliant colors of his vessels. In the early 1990s, his Venetians were developed with elongated, linear blown forms, a product of the glassblowing process, that has since become part of his creative style, resulting in highly baroque, writhing elements. In recent years Chihuly has experimented with Polyvitro to create new interpretations of some of his glass forms. This exhibit was truly worth the trip to Chicago and a chance of a life time to see this master artist's work.
Yes, it is important for anyone in any field to stretch and grow. It is important to continually learn new things because "practicing one's art" in any field is what leads to greatness of puts one in the top 10% of their field and once in awhile one, such as Dale Chihuly, can zoom right into the rarified stratosphere!
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