Ireland Is Introduced To Chihuly's `Chandeliers'

DUBLIN - In a room filled with Kennedy family photographs, Jean Kennedy Smith today recalled the words of her late brother John F. Kennedy as part of her tribute to Seattle glass artist Dale Chihuly.

"President Kennedy once said, `Genius will speak at any time, and the entire world will listen,' " said Kennedy Smith, U.S. ambassador to Ireland.

Smith honored Chihuly at a reception held at the historic Deerfield House, the elegant home that has long served as the residence of the U.S. ambassador. The reception was attended by 100 diplomats, academicians, art collectors and gallery owners.

Chihuly is in Ireland for 2 1/2 weeks for a glass-blowing project with the venerable Waterford Crystal Company. He arrived earlier this week with an entourage of about 50 Seattle glass blowers, assistants, installation experts, administrators, photographers, and makers of video documentaries.

His plan is to have his crew collaborate with craftsmen at Waterford to create a series of huge glass pieces that he calls "chandeliers." A chandelier that he and his team created in a collaborative effort with Finnish glass blowers this year is now on display at Foster-White Gallery in Seattle.

Honored guest

It was the second evening of receptions honoring Chihuly, who is being treated like an honored guest and a much-admired art impresario here in Ireland. Tuesday night, he was feted at a reception at Waterford Crystal, in the town of Waterford, about 100 miles south of Dublin. There he hobnobbed with the mayor of Waterford and the CEO of the company in a reception room where one of his installations of giant glass "floats" and upright glass "spears" looked wildly modernistic next to the traditional Waterford cut crystal on display nearby.

At both receptions Chihuly said that ever since he first conceived his "Chihuly Over Venice," a yearlong project that will involve collaborative glass-making at five European glass factories, he has especially looked forward to coming to Ireland. He visited the country as a young artist in 1964, and said he has been in love with it ever since.

Smith, known for her support of the arts, seemed to be quite in earnest when she noted that if Chihuly can hang one of these chandeliers in the 12th-century Lismore Castle - which is what he plans to do next week - "then why not here?" in the ambassador's house.

Chihuly did not say whether that would be possible.

First gallery show

Along with the collaboration at Waterford Crystal and the installation of numerous glassworks in the town of Waterford and at Lismore Castle, Chihuly's first gallery show in Ireland opens Oct. 10. Suzanne MacDougald, managing director of the Solomon Gallery in Dublin, said she expects Irish collectors will be interested in Chihuly's work, which is new to them. There is none of his work on display anywhere in Ireland and few of those who attended yesterday's reception had any idea what his work looks like.

That will change next week when the large works start going up at Lismore Castle, both outdoors and in the building, parts of which are open to the public. Art collectors, including some from Seattle, have been invited to stay at the historic castle to view the installations. It hasn't been decided how long the installations will remain on view.