Tourist in Your Own City- MFA Chihuly

Back in April, I started to see buses and billboards advertise a Chihuly Exhibit at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts (MFA). I was excited about seeing the exhibit, as I had seen Chihuly another time at the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix, AZ. I didn’t want this to be one of those times that I simply forgot to do something because I live in the area and I can always do it tomorrow, so I made it a point to get to the MFA. Ironically, the friend who took me to see the exhibit in Arizona happened to be in town for business. She another friend, and I made our way to the MFA one Wednesday afternoon.

When we got to the museum, there was a line out the door. On Wednesdays, after 4 PM the entry into the museum is by donation, so many take advantage of getting into the museum for a discount. Despite the discount, it was nice to imagine that so many people are interested in art.

We made our way through the crowd and to the Chihuly exhibit. The first thing that struck me was the use of light. In Arizona, the exhibit was in an outside setting. The glass sculptures were therefore at the mercy of whatever the light conditions of the particular time and day you visited. Here, at the MFA, every person was seeing the pieces a specific way, in lighting that someone had chosen. Of course, most of the displays were visually stunning. The boat with the use of a shinny black surface made for a crisp and clear display and I was transfixed by it and if there wasn’t such a large crowd pushing me onward, I could have stayed looking at that particular display for a long while.

Something I don’t remember seeing in Arizona were smaller pieces, like vases. The MFA included more stand-alone pieces, which I enjoyed for the functional aspect. I could relate to the shapes and pieces and visualize putting them in my living space (not that I could afford it.)

The highlight of the show was the room in which the ceiling was made from different glass pieces. The reflections that came through were mesmorizing and people’s reactions were fun to watch—a small boy seeing the red and blues reflected on his mother’s face generated an ear-to-ear smile and several women stood in awe as another friend took a photo of them under the light coming through the ceiling. It isn’t very often that you get to see and use light like that.
The downsides to seeing this exhibit, was the sheer number of people. I went back a second time and encountered the same crowds. All-in-all, though, it is worth seeing if you can put up with a few people. The exhibit ends on August 7th.

It is probably best to let some photos tell the story. Here are the highlights:

The Boat Reflected, a photo by rmaple_leaf on Flickr.

The Big Display, a photo by rmaple_leaf on Flickr.

A Vessel, a photo by rmaple_leaf on Flickr.

Photos Under Different Colors, a photo by rmaple_leaf on Flickr.

Friends Pose, a photo by rmaple_leaf on Flickr.

To see more photos of both the Chihuly exhibit at the MFA and the Desert Botantical Garden visit this set on flickr.

Events in this post took place in July of 2011