[img]958|left|Alex Campbell||no_popup[/img]Dateline Boston — For a few months in Boston, there has been an exhibit at the Fine Arts Museum called Chihuly: Through the Looking Glass. I didn’t know anything about Dale Chihuly, but the exhibit got rave reviews from my friends on Facebook, and the promotion posters were so colorful, I was intrigued. Besides, who isn’t fascinated by glass blowing? And who doesn’t love to say Chi-hoo-lee?
I went with my friend Courtney, who was just as excited about the exhibit as I was. I did a half-hearted search online to see how we could get discount tickets, to no avail. I was going to have to suck it up and pay $22, plus a $3 printing fee, to go to the museum. Well, I hardly ever go to museums, so I figured it was worth it. When we stepped in, we knew it was worth it. When we saw the first glass piece, we were mesmerized. It was quite stunning — an enormous glass tower that resembled a fir tree. It was bright green. I wondered how it was put together, and how in the world it stayed upright. After viewing such a staggering piece, we couldn’t wait to see the rest.
We went downstairs to the exhibit hall. When we opened the doors to the hall, we were greeted by a large sculpture with tentacles, hanging from the ceiling. It looked like a chandelier. The first thing I noticed was that it was my favorite color, red. The second thing I noticed was the dust on it. I couldn’t believe it. Dust on an art piece? It was distracting. I became disinterested, and moved on.
The next installment was called Banana Boat. I read a little of the story about the piece. Chihuly had gone somewhere and had seen banana boats, and was inspired. Inspired to make a lifesized banana boat and fill it with glass orbs, both with and without appendages. All of the glass pieces were about the size of bowling balls, more or less, and some had arms about the size of a calla lily. The glass was all brightly colored, and the boat was brown. The background was black, so the glass really stood out. It didn’t match. I didn’t get it. I looked around and saw that Courtney had gone to the next section. I was happy to discover that she and I had the same pace when moving through a museum exhibit—look at it, see what it’s about, move along.
The next room was like going to Grandma’s. There were huge vases filled with glass flowers. Glass blown flowers sound pretty, right? Inside glass vases? Gorgeous! But, check this out: They were all metallic tones! Copper, and gold, and silver, and brown. They looked as if they had been spray painted. I’m not even kidding. I quickly left Grandma’s house and caught up with Courtney in the next space, the woven basket room.
Chihuly had been somewhere where he had seen Native American baskets. He was inspired. In the room, one wall was covered with Native American blankets, and another wall had a mixture of real woven baskets and glass blown “baskets” on shelves. There was a low table-like space where there were all glass baskets, smaller ones within larger ones. Here’s the thing: I’m not into Native American art, and I’m not much of a fan of any kind of basket. So again, I wasn’t really too into it. I saw that Chihuly could make glass into any shape he wanted. That takes talent, no doubt. I’m just not into the color tan or woven blankets.
What I like is bright colors that make sense, and in the next room, I was not disappointed. There were tall (about 4 or 5 feet), skinny structures all lined up. They were red, and they looked just like giant birthday candles. I loved it! Moving on…
The next space was pretty interesting. There were more chandelier pieces, brightly colored, one clear, and a couple of pieces that looked like upside down Christmas trees. They were beautiful. I liked those, but I wanted them to be hanging the other way. There was one chandelier piece that was earth-toned. I whispered to Courtney, “That’s what the inside of you looks like if you smoke.” It was really ugly.
I forget where, exactly, but somewhere along our journey was the space that was in the promotion. You looked up at a low ceiling of plexiglass that was filled with shapes that were somewhat sea urchin-like, and bigger ones that resembled fruit bowls. I mentioned that I felt like I was back at Grandma’s, suddenly craving an orange. I was also distracted by everyone pulling out their iPhones to take pictures of the fruit bowls.
Then onto another great space, a room filled with logs. On top of the logs, more giant birthday candles! They were lavender. Yay! And then we turned the corner, and…saw a sign that said EXIT. Courtney turned to me and said, “For real?” I was confused, too. That was it? The end of the exhibit? We had gone through the whole thing in about 30 minutes. I thought to myself, “We paid $25 for what?”
We both had the same reaction to the exhibit, which we were thankful for (our reactions, not the exhibit). Our reaction was, “Meh.” That said, let me be clear: I am impressed by Chihuly’s work. I’m amazed at what he can do with glass, and the visions he has, and the ability to make what is in his mind into something tangible. I appreciate the artistry. I just wish that the pieces had been set up differently, perhaps in a larger space. Maybe spaced out. Without the Grandma vases and baskets. And not $25.The candles? Keep ‘em. It’s always someone’s birthday.
Ms. Campbell may be contacted at snobbyblog@gmail.com
