NEW YORK, NY.- Chihuly, a major new exhibition at The New York Botanical Garden, presented by Bank of America, spotlights world-renowned artist Dale Chihuly’s bold innovation in a variety of media throughout his celebrated career. Chihuly’s first major garden exhibition in New York in more than ten years features more than 20 installations and includes drawings and early works that reveal the evolution and development of his artistic process. Set within NYBG’s landmark landscape and buildings, this exhibition is a must-see throughout the changing seasons. Chihuly runs from April 22 through October 29, 2017.

The Garden’s dramatic vistas become living canvases for work created specifically for NYBG, showcasing Chihuly’s signature organic shapes in brilliant colors. Among the singular sights is a monumental reimagination of his storied 1975 installation at upstate New York’s Artpark: three new works—Koda studies—enliven the water features of the Native Plant Garden and the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory Courtyard’s Tropical Pool, reflecting the interplay and movement of color and light.

“The New York Botanical Garden is the perfect setting for Dale Chihuly’s art,” said Gregory Long, Chief Executive Officer and The William C. Steere Sr. President of NYBG. “Our historic landscape is an open-air museum, providing a thrilling opportunity for our visitors to see the spectacular installations, especially when they will be lit at night. The exhibition will be a more holistic look at the legacy of Chihuly the artist. We are extremely grateful to our sponsors and everyone whose support is making it possible for us to bring this experience to our existing and new audiences.”

“The New York Botanical Garden’s CHIHULY exhibition exemplifies our support of non-profit arts institutions that deliver the arts and enrich societies,” said Rena De Sisto, Global Arts and Culture Executive, Bank of America. “It supports our belief that the arts matter by providing inspirational and educational sustenance, anchoring communities, creating jobs, complementing school curricula, and generating substantial revenue for local businesses.”

Installations Throughout the Botanical Garden Celebrate Chihuly’s Artistic Legacy
Dale Chihuly, an artist whose ideas are aligned with the great 20th-century abstract artists of his generation, celebrated his 75th birthday last year. This exhibition, showcasing his dynamic works of art, dazzles with color, light, and form—by day and night.

Chihuly features hand-blown glass sculptures, complementing NYBG’s landscape and architecture. Glass, however, is not the only medium Chihuly employs to carry out his vision. As stated by Leslie Jackson Chihuly, President and CEO of Chihuly Studio, “Dale began his journey as an artist more than a half century ago, and he continues to push boundaries and innovate in a variety of media, including paint, sculpture, polyvitro, glass, and neon. He and our team have prepared for this exhibition with the goal of surprising and delighting audiences with exciting new works and installations created specifically for NYBG.”

In an homage to the 2006 exhibition at NYBG, Chihuly’s Blue Herons are featured in a new display within the Haupt Conservatory, itself considered a work of glass art. These graceful forms are one of many examples of Chihuly sculptures seen within the grand architecture of the landmark Victorian-style glasshouse.

Legendary works such as Chihuly’s Tower and Chandelier series are presented in new configurations. Three bold colored sculptures hang overhead in the Leon Levy Visitor Center—Cypress Green Chandelier, Mineral Blue Chandelier, and Peridot Green Chandelier. The Conservatory is the location of additional impressive installations—White Tower with Fiori in one of the Seasonal Exhibition Galleries, a new interpretation of Chihuly’s Macchia Forest in the Conservatory’s Aquatic Plants and Vines Gallery, and the Scarlet and Yellow Icicle Tower in the Conservatory Courtyard.

The exhibition also boasts a dramatic neon sculpture. As a graduate student in the late 1960s and then as a professor at Rhode Island School of Design, Chihuly pioneered distinctive applications of neon in his early work. This innovation continued into the ’80s and ’90s, leading to the Tumbleweed, a major element in his exhibitions. During Chihuly’s blockbuster show at NYBG in 2006, his first garden presentation in New York City, he further explored his work in the medium with the development of his first Neon Tower. In the Conservatory Courtyard, Chihuly uses the medium again in a new multicolor installation, Neon 206, taking advantage of the iconic venue’s reflective qualities.

On Garden Way, one of many scenic paths through NYBG’s lauded landscape, Sapphire Star sparkles. In the Lillian Goldman Fountain of Life in front of the LuEsther T. Mertz Library Building, visitors can see Blue Polyvitro Crystals. Palazzo Ducale Tower and other works are on view inside. These one-of-a-kind installations will delight longtime fans and those discovering Chihuly’s art for the first time.

New Work Inspired by Chihuly’s 1975 Artpark Installation
The water features in the Native Plant Garden and the Conservatory Courtyard’s Tropical Pool are the settings for dramatic new artworks inspired by Chihuly’s summer 1975 Artpark installation when he collaborated with Seaver Leslie to create temporary outdoor works in Lewiston, New York, near Niagara Falls. Using sheets of stained glass, the installations were designed to provide contrast between the glass and the surrounding environment, resulting in a physical expression of light.

Now at The New York Botanical Garden, Chihuly revisits this concept to create three new compositions—Koda Study #1 and Koda Study #2 in the Native Plant Garden and Koda Study #3 in the Conservatory Courtyard. The new works—made of polycarbonate sheets—provide a rare opportunity to view the stunning effects of reflection and light created by these colored panels as day transitions to night.

Chihuly’s Early Works on Display in the LuEsther T. Mertz Library Building
In the Art Gallery of the LuEsther T. Mertz Library, visitors will see an exhibition of Dale Chihuly’s early works, including glass series and works on paper. Drawing and painting on paper have been a consistent form of expression for the artist throughout his career, both as a means of communicating with his team and as their own creative outlet.

On the 6th floor of the Mertz Library Building, Chihuly presents a grouping of Fire Orange Baskets, graceful forms first developed in 1977, evoking Northwest Native American baskets. He made use of the effects of gravity, as it shaped and distorted the medium, creating uniquely asymmetrical artworks. These seemingly effortless sculptures first began in muted colors, typical of the Native American baskets after which they were named, gradually evolving in color and size. Chihuly continues to explore this series and experiment with scale, color, and composition. The baskets on view at NYBG are among the largest Chihuly has created.

On the Library Building’s 4th floor, two acrylic paintings are part of a display that includes Palazzo Ducale Tower, one of the most recognizable works from the monumental Chihuly Over Venice exhibition in 1996.