Press Release
Gardens of Glass: Chihuly at Kew
Supported by GlaxoSmithKline
28 May 2005 - 15 January 2006
Witness Kew 's famous landscape transformed with a bold and colourful exhibition of large-scale, organic shaped glass. Gardens of Glass: Chihuly at Kew, a spectacular sequence of uniquely shaped and vibrantly coloured glass sculptures set throughout Kew 's 300-acre garden landscape will be the first exhibition of its kind in Europe.
The exhibition has been specifically designed to respond to the plants, trees, historic landscape, architecture and sweeping vistas of Kew . Gardens of Glass, sponsored by GlaxoSmithKline, is the first exhibition of its kind to be held at Kew , combining elements of art, science and nature. Most pieces will be set within the landscape, including the huge pond in front of the Palm House, while others will be set inside the Temperate House and the Princess of Wales Conservatory. Dale Chihuly has a long-standing interest in historic glasshouses and is very familiar with Kew 's great glasshouses.
'Dale Chihuly creates glass sculpture on an unrivalled scale - a scale to match the majestic environment of Kew ', said Professor Sir Peter Crane, Director of RBG Kew. 'Wherever Chihuly and his team work they create a fantastic sense of excitement. Gardens of Glass will be the unmissable exhibition of 2005 and we are thrilled to host it.'
Dale Chihuly is a leading figure of contemporary glass and has exhibited extensively in the United States as well as internationally - from Venice to Jerusalem, Iceland to Japan. Chihuly's work was last seen by the British public at the Victoria and Albert Museum in the summer of 2001. This exhibition at Kew will provide an opportunity to see the large scale work in an entirely different setting, out in the open against the spectacular backdrop of the Gardens and inside set among the tropical plants of the great glasshouses. The visitor's experience of the work will alter dramatically from day to night and from season to season.
Gardens of Glass will include Chihuly's newest series of work, Fiori, which has never been exhibited in Europe before. Site-specific works have been created for the Palm House and Temperate House and a traditional Thames skiff will be used to hold the glassworks for the Boat installation on the Palm House pond. The exhibition will also include some of Chihuly's best-loved series of work, including Macchia, Ikebana and Chandeliers .
A full programme of talks and events is planned, including a lecture series and workshops for children. Please contact Kew 's Press Office for further information.
An advance piece from the Gardens of Glass exhibition is currently on display in the Princess of Wales Conservatory. The Sun at Kew Gardens reflects the vibrant colours and monumental scale of the installations to follow, standing at over four metres high and four metres wide and weighing a total of 4600 pounds (2000lb of glass; 2600lb of armature).
The monumental sculptures are formed out of thousands of pieces of hand-blown glass and assembled on site. The installation of these pieces is a unique spectacle in itself, with hundreds of pieces of glass assembled into their final form.
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.
Please contact the Press Office for an opportunity to photograph the installation process in May or to attend the press preview of the completed exhibition on Thursday 26 May 2005.
Visit www.kew.org for further information about the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
Notes to Editors
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 glass blowing as a studio art. Dale Chihuly has travelled widely and exhibited internationally. His work is held in over 200 museums throughout the world. For further information please visit 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. The site houses over 40 listed buildings and other structures including the Palm House, Temperate House, Orangery and Pagoda as well as two ancient monuments, Queen Charlotte's Cottage and Kew Palace. 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. GlaxoSmithKline is one of the world's leading pharmaceutical and healthcare companies and is committed to improving the quality of human life by enabling people to do more, feel better and live longer. 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.
For further Press information please contact:
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Kew: Public Relations Tel: +44 (0)20 8332 5607/5619 |
Wakehurst Place: Public Relations Tel: +44 (0)1444 894018 |
