24 × 29 × 16 in
 in
 cm
This artwork is sold and shipped with its original crate. Please enquire for a custom shipping quote.
$62,000
This exquisite piece from Chihuly’s Baskets series is evidence of why the artist considers this series the most innovative of his creations. The traits of glassblowing — fire, gravity, and centrifugal force — open the door to a fascinating interpretation of the Native American woven baskets that inspired the series since its inception in 1977 and have long fascinated the artist. A departure from the historically symmetrical nature of glass blown sculpture, Black Basket with Yellow Lip Wrap features the organic colours of the series’ earlier pieces but showcases the lip wrap that the artist later added to create a prominent outline for the translucent, asymmetrical pieces. The intriguing teardrop shape of this piece speaks to the artist’s willingness to allow gravity more of a role in the production process. The silhouette serves as one more nod to its inspiration: baskets that often droop under the weight of their hand-gathered and woven materials. At nearly 3 x 2 feet, Black Basket falls within the middle range of the series, some pieces of which exceed six feet in length.
“I saw some beautiful Northwest Coast Indian baskets at the Washington State Historical Society, and was struck by the grace of their slumped, sagging forms. I wanted to capture this grace in glass.” — Dale Chihuly
| Medium | Sculpture |
| Signature | Signed |
| Frame | Unframed |
| Condition | excellent |
| Seller | Private |
| Location | Vancouver, Canada |
| Provenance | Private Collection, Vancouver. |
Born in 1941 in Tacoma, Washington, Dale Chihuly was introduced to glass while studying interior design at the University of Washington. After graduating in 1965, Chihuly enrolled in the first glass program in the country, at the University of Wisconsin. He continued his studies at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), where he later established the glass program and taught for more than a decade. In 1968, after receiving a Fulbright Fellowship, he went to work at the Venini glass factory in Venice. There he observed the team’s approach to blowing glass, which is critical to the way he works today. In 1971, Chihuly cofounded Pilchuck Glass School in Washington State. With this international glass center, Chihuly has led the avant-garde in the development of glass as a fine art.
His work is included in more than 200 museum collections worldwide. He has been the recipient of many awards, including two fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and twelve honorary doctorates. Chihuly has created more than a dozen well-known series of works, among them, Cylinders and Baskets in the 1970s; Seaforms, Macchia, Persians, and Venetians in the 1980s; Niijima Floats and Chandeliers in the 1990s; and Fiori in the 2000s. He is also celebrated for large architectural installations. In 1986, he was honored with a solo exhibition, Dale Chihuly objets de verre, at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Palais du Louvre, in Paris. In 1995, he began Chihuly Over Venice, for which he created sculptures at glass factories in Finland, Ireland, and Mexico, then installed them over the canals and piazzas of Venice.
In 1999, Chihuly started an ambitious exhibition, Chihuly in the Light of Jerusalem; more than 1 million visitors attended the Tower of David Museum to view his installations. In 2001, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London curated the exhibition Chihuly at the V&A. Chihuly’s lifelong fascination for glasshouses has grown into a series of exhibitions within botanical settings. The Garden Cycle began in 2001 at the Garfield Park Conservatory in Chicago and continued at several locations, among them the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, near London, in 2005, and the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx in 2006 and again in 2017. Meanwhile, Chihuly has exhibited at other venues as well, including the de Young Museum in San Francisco, in 2008; the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, in 2011; the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, in 2012; the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, in 2013; the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, in 2016; and the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas, in 2017. In addition, Chihuly Garden and Glass, a major long-term exhibition, opened at Seattle Center in 2012.
Source: Chihuly
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