L'Italo-Americano

SEATTLE ITALIAN COMMUNITY THURSDAY, JUNE 11, 2026 www.italoamericano.org 28 L'Italo-Americano Istituto Veneto di Scienze, Lettere ed Arti, an interpre- tive and archival center in C a m p o S a n t o S t e f a n o . T h e r e , d r a w i n g s , p h o - tographs, videos and docu- ments, curated by Suzanne Geiss, help illuminate the months of experimentation, collaboration and inspira- tion that led up to the Venice installation. The Istituto is also displaying a grouping of baskets created by Chihuly in 2017 known collectively as Golden Celadon Baskets. Chihuly, born in 1941 in Tacoma, Washington, is no stranger to Italy. After he earned an MFA in sculpture f r o m t h e R h o d e I s l a n d School of Design, he went to Europe in the late 1960s on a F u l b r i g h t F e l l o w s h i p . While in Italy, he worked at the prestigious Venini studio s c u l p t u r e s w e r e t h e n designed to be site-specific. It took five months and a team of eight glassblowers, led by Chihuly, working at the Seattle Boathouse to cre- ate the Venice installations. Another six months were spent assembling them. Transporting the massive s c u l p t u r e s a c r o s s t h e Atlantic was no easy feat. Four 40-foot containers left the Northwest in mid-Janu- ary, bound for Genoa. Once there, the containers were transferred to trucks and made their way east across Italy. In Venice they were off-loaded again and barged along the Grand Canal to their final destination. To complement the three outdoor sculptures, Chihuly: Venice 2026 also includes an indoor component at the o n t h e i s l a n d o f M u r a n o , becoming the first American g l a s s b l o w e r t o d o s o . H e later worked with Italian glass masters such as Italo Scanga, Lino Tagliapietra and others. Closer to home, Chihuly was a pivotal force in estab- lishing the internationally renowned Pilchuck Glass S c h o o l , a b o u t 5 0 m i l e s north of Seattle (Pilchuck is a co-presenter of Chihuly: Venice 2026 along with the Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park). Established in 1971, Pilchuck was the first residential education center in the world to focus exclusively on glass art, dri- ving the Northwest's reputa- tion as an influential hub for that medium. Over the decades, Chihu- ly's impact on the Pilchuck School was enormous, much of it inspired by his study in I t a l y . " P i l c h u c k e x i s t s b e c a u s e o f D a l e a n d h i s indomitable generosity and vision," said Pilchuck execu- tive director Donna Davies. "The inspiration and collab- oration he gleaned from his t i m e i n V e n i c e p a v e d t h e w a y f o r h i m t o f o u n d a school built on a commit- m e n t o f c o l l a b o r a t i o n , experimentation and explo- ration." T h e r e t u r n t o V e n i c e s o m e t h r e e d e c a d e s l a t e r was a bittersweet moment for Chihuly. "These three new sculptures are a tribute to the city that's inspired me f o r t h e l a s t 6 0 y e a r s , " h e said. "It's an honor to be back in this beautiful city that has had such an impact on who I am as an artist." During a gathering at the Boathouse shortly before C h i h u l y : V e n i c e 2 0 2 6 opened, Chihuly shared a story about his first trip to Italy as a young artist. As he got ready to leave, a friend gave him this advice: shave off your beard, buy a new sports coat, get some wrap- a r o u n d s u n g l a s s e s , a n d don't look back! W h e t h e r h e f o l l o w e d t h o s e s u g g e s t i o n s i s n o t known, but it's clear that his t i m e i n V e n i c e h e l p e d inspire and transform his distinctive approach to glass art. large sculptures, all visible from the Accademia Bridge, o n e o f f o u r b r i d g e s t h a t cross the Grand Canal at its southern end. Each sculp- ture is free and open to the public. The 30-foot Gold Tower can be viewed in the garden of the Palazzo Franchetti, its tall thin shape in some ways resembling a Northwest fir tree. Two other sculptures a r e n e a r b y : t h e B l u e a n d G r e e n T o w e r a t P a l a z z o Balbi Valier seamless blends those two colors, and the End of the Day Chande- lier is a vibrant celebration of light and color installed at Palazzo Querini alla Carità. The project was years in the making. Leslie Chihuly spent two years alone get- ting permission from offi- cials for the locations. The A long the north s h o r e o f L a k e Union, not far f r o m t h e U n i - v e r s i t y o f Washington campus, runs Northlake Way. With its views of downtown Seattle, the street is home to a mix of d i v e r s e r e s i d e n t s – f r o m office buildings and a brew pub to a houseboat commu- n i t y , l u m b e r r e t a i l e r a n d I v a r ' s S a l m o n H o u s e , a beloved Northwest icon. What many passersby-by don't realize is that the large u n m a r k e d b u i l d i n g n e x t door to the Salmon House contains the studio of one of t h e n a t i o n ' s m o s t w e l l - known glass artists – North- west native Dale Chihuly. With its façade of gray cor- rugated metal siding, the s e m i - i n d u s t r i a l b u i l d i n g , c a l l e d t h e B o a t h o u s e b e c a u s e i t o n c e h o u s e d a boat-building facility, has served as the headquarters of Chihuly production since 1989. In earlier years, Chi- huly and his wife Leslie lived there as well. At the heart of the studio is the hot shop – massive ovens that can be fired up to 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit, melting the colorful glass t h a t a t e a m o f c r a f t s m e n shape and twist, forming the large organic-looking sculp- tures for which Chihuly is famous. In 1995, Chihuly made his mark internationally with a l a n d m a r k p r o j e c t c a l l e d C h i h u l y O v e r V e n i c e , which took the ancient Ital- ian city by storm. For that installation, he created and installed 14 glass chande- liers that were positioned along the canals and piazzas. It began his lifelong connec- tion to Venice. T h i r t y y e a r s l a t e r , t h e Chihuly team is back with a n o t h e r n e w i n s t a l l a t i o n a l o n g t h e G r a n d C a n a l . T i t l e d C h i h u l y : V e n i c e 2 0 2 6 , t h e i n s t a l l a t i o n o p e n e d M a y 5 a n d r u n s t h r o u g h m i d - N o v e m b e r , concurrently with the Venice Biennale. The centerpiece of Chihu- ly: Venice 2026 are three A thank you gift from the shores of lake Union to the Grand Canal of Venice RITA CIPALLA Top, the monumental Gold Tower was installed earlier this year in the garden of the Palazzo Franchetti in Venice; bot- tom, shimmering blues, greens, and yellows make up the Blue and Green Tower installation (Photos by Nathaniel Willson)

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