Chihuly

A world traveler with a phenomenal artistic vision, glassblower Dale Chihuly left his teaching position at the Rhode Island School of Design and headed west, where he founded the Pilchuck Glass School on a donated tree farm outside Seattle. After losing an eye in a devastating car accident (which resulted in a dangerous lack of depth perception), Chihuly began to create designs that could be realized by others through the process of “hot shop teamwork,” which he had observed in Venice. In this handsomely packaged DVD boxed set, four programs follow Chihuly and his teams across the world: Chihuly Gardens & Glass, chronicling the 2002 installation of glass sculptures among the plants at Chicago's Garfield Conservatory; Chihuly at the V&A, a rare one-person retrospective at London's Victoria and Albert Museum; Chihuly in the Light of Jerusalem, a massive, millennial celebration in blown glass and plastic at the Citadel of Jerusalem (along with an installation of 64 tons of Alaskan ice creating a symbolic wall); and Chihuly and the Masters of Venice, in which two master glassworkers leave Venice for a collaboration with the team in Seattle. Not only a magnificent visual experience, but a compelling personal story and artistic odyssey, Chihuly is loaded with extra features, including the full-length documentary Chihuly in Action. Highly recommended. Editor's Choice. Aud: H, C, P. (J. Reed)