Chihuly

The creative process, Chihuly style, is the theme of this video. Filmed on location, on a small rocky island 10 hours by ferry out of Tokyo Bay, his talented team works without the usual limitations. Chihuly "finds things by doing" by working, rather than just planning and thinking. Famous for working with glass in new ways, in this video, Chihuly invents "burn paintings" by swirling molten glass onto paper with striking results. Enjoy the unique insights of one of the most prolific and successful artists working in the world today, as he sings and bicycles his way around town. Chihuly finds inspiration in a bubble, and creates 1000 fishing floats and stunning sculpture. Visit the last Japanese glass float blower in his factory, where a simple technique results in the most perfect form - the sphere.

Dale Chihuly is a teacher, an artist, and a kid all at once. "Chihuly in Action" documents Dale Chihuly's creative state of mind, passion, and energy during several fast-paced workshops. Chihuly translates the fun and excitement of his world-famous glass art and drawings into a personal and highly interactive experience for you people of many ages and backgrounds. This video features the upbeat original hip-hop music of DJ Walker and the energetic presentation of the hosts, students Shane Nutter and Lucas Lowery, speaking the same universal language of art. Segments of this video were filmed on location in Seattle, Tacoma, Kansas City, and Finland. Produced by the father-son team of Michael and Morgan Barnard, "Chihuly in Action" features the Hilltop Artists-in-Residence program in Tacoma, Washingtom, where at-risk high school students get an opportunity to learn glassblowing as part of their course of study.

Biomorphic glass forms floating down a Finnish river, transparent green and amethyst spears leaning against ancient Irish dolmens, exotic iridescent blossoms blooming in a Mexican factory, and an extravaganza of faceted crystal reaching upward in the Doges Palace in Venice are all part of the Chihuly Over Venice project chronicled in River of Glass. The 90-minute video tape begins with the first blowing session in Nuutäjarvi, Finland, and follows Chihuly and his team to Waterford, Irelenad; Monterrey, Mexico; and finally to Venice. The beauty of the glass works installed in each venue is sensitively and evocatively documented by Michael Barnard as directory, chief photographer, and editor. Through interviews with the artist and many of those involved with this project, River of Glass reveals Chihuly's creative process as he draws, directs, and demands the best of his team.

In 1988, Dale Chihuly invited Italian glass master Lino Tagliapietra to collaborate with on an audacious glass series called the Venetians. Together, with the stunning use of bold color combinations, new asymmetrical forms, and extraordinarily large scale, they refined the possibilities of what could be made in contemporary glass. Having achieved success at that challenge, Chihuly decided to go small, inventing Piccolo Venetians, in order to work faster and experiment with color and form more easily. Chihuly Working with Lino Tagliapietra brings you into the hotshop to witness Lino interpreting Chihuly's drawings into art glass, and Lino's work inspiring new ideas for more drawings and more glass. The marriage of Lino's traditional glass vessels with Chihuly's eccentricity in the form of coils, snouts, flowers, wraps, and handles make this series unique. The process gives a rare insight into the collaborative workings of one of the most prolific art glass studios in the world.

The challenge of creating sculpture that is dazzling yet approachable provided Dale Chihuly with an opportunity of a lifetime. Enter the Atlantis Resort on Paradise Island and marvel at the four Chihuly sculptures that grace this setting. The Crystal Gate is a glittering tower of over 2000 hand-blown glass crystals soaring more than 20 feet in the air. On one side is the Temple of the Sun; on the other, the Temple of the Moon. The sun radiates yellow, orange, and red elements from the fiery globe. Equally compelling, the Temple of the moon is cool and calm in cobalt blue and opalescent white. Above, in shades of gold, silver, and amethyst, is the Atlantis Chandelier, a wild array of glass suggesting jellyfish, anemones, tentacles of squid, and seaweed. Watch the Chihuly team of artists, artisans, glassblowers, and installers work from prototypes of the sculptures to create these exquisite works of art.

Chihuly, famous for reaching out for inspiration, and collaboration, asked the Venetian master glass sculptor Pino Signoretto to come to the Seattle hotshop and create new pieces of amazing artistry, scale, and finesse. Signoretto realizes the design envisioned by Chihuly with the help of a talented team that grows to 14 members in the most intense moments. Signoretto is known for his master's ability to sculpt his vision of undersea life, the animal kingdom, and the remarkably familiar visage of Chihuly's Putti. He sings, smiles, and choreographs the dance that results int he massive and amusing "stoppers" for this glass series. The spontaneity and fun evident in the create process working for Signoretto and Chihuly belies the monumental ambition of these two marvelous artists working together.