Chihuly in the Hotshop

Name of Film: Chihuly in the Hotshop
Project type: Documentary Feature
Runtime: 90 minutes
Country of Origin: United States
Language: English
Shooting Format: High Def
Aspect Ratio: 16:9

Contact:
Catherine Coughlin
Sharp Think
Ph: 212.829.0002
 

Producer: Mark McDonnell
Director: Emmy award winning Peter West
Key Cast: Dale Chihuly, Lino Tagliapietra, Pino Signoretto, William Morris, Martin Blank, Benjamin Moore, Flora Mace, Joey Kirkpatrick, Richard Royal, Dante Marioni, Joseph DeCamp, James Mongrain

Program Summary:

Dale Chihuly helped revolutionize the studio glass movement by expanding its original premise of the solitary artist to encompass the notion of collaborative teams and a division of labor within the creative process. For three decades, the artist has exhibited extensively in museums, and his site-specific, public sculptures can be seen in cities around the world.

In 2006, the world-renowned artist reunited with glass-blowers from important periods of his career for a week-long residency at the Museum of Glass in his hometown of Tacoma, Washington. The event brought together the artists and artisans to revisit the creation of some of Chihuly’s most important series, representing more than 30 years of work. Forty gaffers and artists participated in the residency, and were joined by more than 10,000 visitors wishing to see the creative process first-hand.

The fast-paced documentary, CHIHULY IN THE HOTSHOP (available in both 60- and 90-minute versions), captures highlights of the Museum of Glass residency, following Chihuly and his teams through the often physically grueling process, as they create magnificent pieces of glass art before an appreciative audience in the museum's state-of-the-art hotshop. Their work revisits 13 of Chihuly’s best-known series: Cylinders, Baskets, Seaforms, Macchia, Soft Cylinders, Persians, Venetians, Piccolo Venetians, Putti, Ikebana, Niijima Floats, Pilchuck Stumps and Fiori.

In the film Chihuly discusses the genesis of each series. He says he derived inspiration for his early, breakthrough Baskets series from the Native American basket collection he saw in 1977 at Tacoma's Washington State Historical Society. Chihuly recalls his creation of the Venetian series with Italian master glass-blower Lino Tagliapietra after seeing Art Deco glass in Venice; ultimately, the series “took on a life of its own,” drawing upon forms and techniques from throughout history. Chihuly also recounts how a visit to a Japanese island in the mid-1990s evoked boyhood memories of collecting fishing floats along the Washington coast; those memories spurred the creation of the Niijima Float series, the largest and most complicated and challenging pieces Chihuly and his team ever produced. Interwoven with these recollections and insights into the artist’s work are high-energy video of the artists and gaffers bringing Chihuly’s ideas to fruition.

CHIHULY IN THE HOTSHOP premiered January 3, 2008, on the opening weekend of the 19th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival. Filmgoers praised the documentary as the most accurate portrayal ever made of the artist at work.  The film won “Best Documentary” and “Best Director” at the 2008 NATAS Emmy Awards.

Film location:
Museum of Glass, Tacoma, Washington

Trailer:

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About the Artist:
Dale Chihuly is considered one of the most innovative and iconic figures in contemporary art. Chihuly has been working with glass as an artistic medium for over fifty years, to increasing critical and popular acclaim. His solo exhibition venues have included the Victoria and Albert Museum, London; the de Young Museum, San Francisco; the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; and the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. His work is in the permanent collections of more than 200 museums worldwide.

Director’s Biography:
Peter West is an award-winning filmmaker who fosters awareness of artists and engagement with their work through the power of film. For 20 years he has worked closely with American artist Dale Chihuly, directing documentaries about his process and exhibitions in museums and gardens worldwide. His films, including Chihuly in the Hotshop and Chihuly Outside, have been broadcast nationally on PBS and screened at film festivals including the Palm Springs International Film Festival and Festival International du Film sur l'Art (FIFA) in Montreal, Canada. In addition to his work with Chihuly, West documents the work of other artists and museum exhibitions and has collaborated on several artist’s film projects.