Studio Edition Glass

Gardens of Glass: Chihuly at Kew
Supported by GlaxoSmithKline
28 May 2005 - 15 January 2006

With the gardens and glasshouses at Kew transformed by Dale Chihuly's large-scale, vibrantly-coloured glass installations, take inspiration and seize the opportunity to own your own piece of Chihuly glass! Prices range from c. £2,500 to c. £4,000.

A special book on Gardens of Glass: Chihuly at Kew will be available from August. Priced at c. £20 it will include a range of beautiful images of the installations at Kew.

An extensive range of books, DVDs, posters and notecards is also available, giving everyone the opportunity to take home a momento of their visit.

Studio glass is on display in the White Peaks exhibition area. The exhibition book and other merchandise is available from the shops at Victoria Gate and White Peaks .

Ends

Further information:

For further information and images please contact Anna Quenby, Lauren Bird or Oliver Basciano in the Kew Gardens Press Office, Telephone 020 8332 5607, email pr@kew.org .

Visit www.kew.org for further information about the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

Notes to Editors:

Gardens of Glass: Chihuly at Kew
Gardens of Glass: Chihuly at Kew, supported by GlaxoSmithKline, is a major exhibition of large-scale, vividly-coloured, organically-shaped glass installations by renowned American artist, Dale Chihuly. This spectacular sequence of uniquely-shaped and vibrantly-coloured glass sculptures displayed in Kew's historic glasshouses and unique garden landscape is the first exhibition of its kind in to be held in Europe. The exhibition has been specifically designed to respond to the plants, trees, historic landscape, architecture and sweeping vistas of Kew. The exhibition is on from 28 May 2005 until January 2006, giving visitors the opportunity to experience the works throughout the changing seasons. www.kew.org/chihuly.

Dale Chihuly
Dale Chihuly was born in Tacoma, Washington in 1941. He trained with Harvey Littleton, the father of American studio glass, was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to study at the illustrious Venini factory in Venice, established the glass course a the famous Rhode Island School of Design and became the founding artist of Pilchuck Glass School,the pre-eminent school of glass. He leads the avant garde in the development of glassblowing as a studio art. Dale Chihuly has travelled widely and exhibited internationally. His work is held in over 200 museums throughout the world. www.chihuly.com.

Royal Botanic Gardens , Kew
Kew Gardens is a major international visitor attraction and its 132 hectares of landscaped gardens attract over one million visitors per year. Kew was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in July 2003 and represents over 250 years of historical landscape. RBG, Kew is a world famous scientific organisation, internationally respected for its outstanding living collection of plants and world-class herbarium as well as its scientific expertise in plant diversity, conservation and sustainable development in the UK and around the world. www.kew.org.

GlaxoSmithKline
Gardens of Glass: Chihuly at Kew is supported by GlaxoSmithKline as part of the company's community support programme. With global headquarters close to Kew in Brentford, the company has a continuing programme of charitable activities in the UK, funding a variety of projects in the following areas: healthcare, scientific education, medical research, the arts and the environment. The company is a longstanding supporter of Kew, having sponsored a number of projects at the Gardens, the most recent of which was the Go Wild festival in 2003. For further information on GSK's community programmes please visit www.gsk.com/community.