You might already know something about the glass artist Dale Chihuly. He works in hot glass (the melted kind) and for many years, now, has produced the most amazing, colorful, fanciful, magical glass installations you can imagine! I've been to a couple of his exhibitions, before, and have seen TV programs and videos of his working processes. Therefore, when I heard that there was to be an exhibit at the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park, I knew we had to make it a priority.
On Sunday, Tom and I drove to San Francisco to see Dylan and Chihuly. Dylan is training for a triathlon (unlike Chihuly, no doubt), and had been swimming and biking all morning, so he was tired, already, by the time we hooked up, but we dragged him along, anyway (and he was glad we did!).
I'm posting random shots that I took of the wonderful colors and textures (that's Dylan in the pink one). There's no way to accurately represent the show, of course. Most of the rooms were darkish and featured different phases of Chihuly's professional journey in glass art, arranged and lit for maximum effect. They've got the art of displaying the art honed to perfection. Some rooms were Dr. Seuss, others Hubble telescope. Even with the huge crowd, the works were entirely mesmerizing.
And there was a crowd. We had a leisurely lunch, then we ambled over to the Museum,s innovative new building, thinking we could just waltz in and check out the Chihuly in our own sweet time. Here's a handy tip: if you plan to go on a weekend, anyway, order your tickets ahead of time. They allow only so many (too many) folks in at a time and the admission lines were discouraging, at first. Dylan found a shorter line downstairs, and so we got a 3:00pm slot, having arrived around 1:30. But, it's OK because we had other options to explore. It's an eclectic collection they have at the de Young. Textiles to antiquities.
Sculpture to paintings--a nice assortment to see. Plus, there's a very cool observation tower/gift shop at the top (as opposed to the lobby/gift shop, or the textile-exhibit/gift shop, or the bathroom/gift shop--no gift shop opportunity has been overlooked). It was a cold (seriously!), gray day, but, even so, the view was terrific.
So, do it. It will lift your spirits. Tickle your fancy. Blow your mind. Raise your consciousness. Warm the cockles of your heart. And cost only $15. Chihuly is showing until the end of September. Here's the de Young site: http://www.famsf.org/ Check it out. Oh, and there's a very cool permanent Andy Goldsworthy piece in the entrance patio on an "earthquake" theme. What more could you want?
