Glass Art Piece in Chicago Smashed

Associated Press ^ | Monday, August 19, 2002

[Dog Gone]

CHICAGO (AP) -- Someone shattered a $70,000 glass flower sculpture by artist Dale Chihuly that was on display at the Garfield Park Conservatory, officials said.

The colorful figurine, part of the ``Chihuly in the Park'' exhibit, was irreversibly damaged Friday night while the conservatory was closed for a private party, Chicago Park District spokeswoman Angelynne Amores said.

``It's like someone plucked the flower,'' said Amores.

Police said their investigation would include tracking down guests at the party, held to honor a couple on their wedding anniversary. The cost of the damage will be recouped because the party hosts had to carry $2 million worth of insurance.

Police said they didn't know how or why the visitor damaged the sculpture, which looks like a glass vase with a flower and a plant inside.

But police said that given its location -- in the middle of an ankle-deep pond surrounded by a waterfall -- whoever broke it had to go to some trouble to get to it.

``You have to crawl through this pond to get to this piece, so obviously it's not totally accidental,'' said Sgt. John Pallohusky. ``But we're just not sure if it was malicious or not.''

More than 450,000 people have visited the exhibit since it opened at the conservatory, a large indoor garden house, last November. Because of its popularity, the show was recently extended for a second time until Nov. 4.

Among Chihuly's best-known works are the floral chandelier in the Bellagio hotel-casino in Las Vegas, a 55-foot glass tower at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art, and the newly opened Chihuly Bridge of Glass, a 500-foot pedestrian bridge in Chihuly's native Tacoma, Wash.

[Dog Gone]

[Thinkin' Gal]

A relative of Clintoon?

[Orual]

Is the photo a before or after picture?

[kitkat]

Darn! I hoped it was the Chihuly dish that Hillary took from the White House.

[Tijeras_Slim]

I've seen an exhibition of Dale Chihuly's stuff. Some of it was kind of strange (I'm no art buff.) but it was all pretty amazing. Shame one of our "betters" has no more respect for property than most politicians.

[Dog Gone]

I'm not even sure that's the piece of glass that was broken. It is some pretty amazing stuff on display there.

Here's the link.

[SarahW]

Chihuly's blown glass is "real" art. It's a medium (blown glass) that requires tremendous skill, unlike, say, tossing poo on a canvas or putting objects in pee.

All the pieces have an ethereal, otherworldly quality. It is amazing stuff viewed in person.

[RightWhale]

What is important, the product of the artist, or the act of creation itself, or the perception of the art in the mind pof the witness? Maybe all, in different ways, but this points out the superiority in some aspects of the performance arts. Theater, dance, and music are performance arts and exist only while being performed before an audience, --or audient in the case of the teen with earbuds.

When the performance is done, only the perception remains. Thus, this glass flower has completed its performance, and the audience has gone home.

[Wm Bach]

Wow! What great glasswork. It's not often that
something something so labelled as "art" turns out
to be actual art these days.

[dighton]

Like many of the Upper Class
He liked the Sound of Broken Glass.

-- Belloc.

[SarahW]

Some Chiluly "water lilies":

[general_re]

"That piece certainly has some large, fleshy, bulbous regions, now doesn't it? Isn't that special?"

[Atlantian]

Didn't the Clintons steal a Chiluly from the White House?

[SarahW]

Say what now?

I don't think the vandal did a good thing.

[Cogadh na Sith]

70,000 dollars for that POS!?

[vikingchick]

But police said that given its location -- in the middle of an ankle-deep pond surrounded by a waterfall -- whoever broke it had to go to some trouble to get to it.

Maybe a jealous rival threw a rock or a finger bowl at it.

[eniapmot]

Chihuly doesn't come close to matching the quality of the real masters of blown glass. (Just ask Chihuly!)

[TADSLOS]

"Ooh, what a pretty flower for Marge..."

[GnuHere]

I love his stuff, and glass art in general. It's a shame that some cretin gained access to a work of art and managed to destroy it. I'm assuming "acts of nature" have been ruled out. To me, the fact that the private party had adequate insurance doesn't replace the original piece...what if he (the artist) is not in the mood, or too psyched out by its destruction, to recreate it? It's gone forever.

The destruction of glass art raises an interesting security issue...can the masses partake of it without putting it in a protective shell, thus obscuring its most lovely qualities? Kinda like seeing the Mona Lisa covered by, what, a couple inches of security glass?

[Tijeras_Slim]

I wasn't comparing it to the stuff churned out by NEA "grantsters". It's amazing work, and I can't imagine the skill it takes to do it.