Today we get a treat from Nancy Singham in Evanston, Illinois. She visited the Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 2010 during a Chihuly glass display, and wanted to share it with us.
Nancy says, “While the garden has dozens and dozens of world class sculptures set lovingly into its wide variety of garden settings, the pictures I chose here included the colorful glasswork of Dale Chihuly, whose work was featured that summer throughout Meijer Gardens. I have seen his work displayed in several other public gardens in the US, but I especially love these because of the way the glass, the plants, and the midwestern landscape all interact with each other.
“As you can see, there is a wide range of garden settings, from waterfalls to wetlands, and meadows to more formal gardens close to buildings. But each setting enhances the glass sculptures while at the same time, the sculptures brings the setting into sharp relief. The shape, the color, and the texture of the glass all have to relate to the surrounding plants. Come to the midwest and see our gardens!”
Meijer Gardens is on my list for this summer, Nancy! I can’t wait to get there. I do think this is one of the best displays of Chihuly glass I’ve ever seen in a public garden. It’s so tasteful and beautiful. Thanks so much!
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Comments
Wow! This made my day!
I appreciate this post. I love Chihuly's work and enjoy seeing its integration into a garden. I suppose I'm just a big fan of tasteful garden sculpture as it adds meaning and yet another layer to the garden experience.
Now- these are some fun creations and ideas to adopt/add for
extra color and form to incorporate in our own gardens!
LOVE IT!! Thanks Nancy for the pictures!
Thanks so much for the visual treat, Nancy. My energy level went up a few notches just looking at the swath of red exclamation points...hope it stays with me throughout the day and I can be particularly productive! Do you happen to know if Mr. Chihuly himself participates in the selection of his sculpture pieces and their placements when a public garden features his work in a way such as this? And is this a permanent installation or was it just for a set period of time?
Thanks for sharing this. I love Chihuly's work and particularly his garden and outdoor installations. I also like these gardens. As stated, looks like lots of variety. Lovely.
Aggghhh... my eyes hurt...terrible photography! Please, if you're into garden pics spend more than $50 on a camera, and use a tripod. What a lost opportunity. :-(
I love the pale blue sculptures in the first photo the best. I watched a documentary on Chihuly and his display at KEW gardens - fantastic! Love the organic living shapes he creates and how they meld into the garden. What a treat for you - thanks for sharing it with us!
Great photos
Thanks for posting.
Please ignore comments of tractor 1 whose mother didn't teach him "if you can't say something nice don't say anything at all".
Joy
Is there a permanent installation of Chihully's work in a garden in the USA? I would put that on my Bucket List. Thanks for sharing.
Gloria
Unfortunately the exhibit only ran from April 30 - September 30, 2010.
BLING! I love glass in the garden ~ when tastefully done. Balls in the waterfalls! Must copy. ;)Thanks for the fun.
boards:
Check here: http://www.chihuly.com/
My Kentucky coffee tree, I planted it as a sapling about ten years ago... according to the arborist at my favorite nursery (Storys.com) it's the only known specimen growing in this county... about ready to drop it's leaves in early fall, it's the last tree to leaf out in spring and the first to drop its leaves in fall.
My Kentucky coffeetree.
If you come to Grand Rapids, take a side trip south and west to Fernwood Botanical Garden! There are a few good, specialty nurseries along the route, too.
Thank you for sharing this lovely garden. I am not a big fan of a lot of garden art, but this very cool. Tractor1 , I was not too familiar with the Kentucky coffee tree. I checked it out and it looks like an interesting tree. Are you going to try it as a coffee substitute? Beautiful blue sky in that picture.
cwheat000: Kentucky coffeetree (one word) is either male or female, so far mine has produced no pods so I suspect it's male. The seeds are highly toxic until roasted. When taking photos I try to choose a time when natural conditions are advantagous.
Tractor1- http://www.amnh.org/learn/musings/FA01/h_mb.htm- check out this link. It has cool info on the Kentucky coffeetree's evolutionary past. I think you are right about it being one word, but a lot of uninformed websites have it spelled as two words. When I tried to spell it correctly this time, even my spell check got it wrong, and changed it back to two words. It appears that no animal has been stupid or brave enough, except man, to try and eat this thing, since possibly the mastodons.
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