Chihuly did an art exhibit back in 2018 at Biltmore, in the Biltmore gardens specifically and I was not able to attend the exhibit back then. When I heard that there was another planned exhibit for this year I bought my tickets almost immediately. Dale Chihuly is an American glass artist and entrepreneur. He is well known in the field of blown glass moving it into the realm of large-scale sculpture. His art is world renowned and Chihuly has artwork all over the world. I have personally seen his artwork in places like Paris, London and New York. This time the Chihuly exhibit would be taking place in Biltmore’s Amherst at Deer Park, a small convention center on the Biltmore property.
the exhibit
The artwork was stunning with details in every piece that you really needed to take your time to notice and appreciate. Coming into the exhibit you can stop to see some of his smaller pieces that were displayed in a beautiful theme with meticulous arrangement.
Moving into the next space, you pass by a colorful painting that leads into an empty room whose ceiling was full of Chihuly blown glass pieces. The backlight created a colorful glow all around the room almost as if you were underwater.
Around the corner in the next room were the larger, vertical pieces in vibrant colors that were lit up and simply amazing to see.
Moving into the next room was for sure the main event of the exhibit. There were so many beautiful pieces to look at that I stayed in this specific room for a very long time just trying to look at them and savor the details. It was such a beautiful display of so many colorful glass pieces that were both very large and smaller in size. The varying shapes created such a visual interest, and one could of course discern the iconic spiral glass that is true to form Chihuly.
And then, almost as a small encore, there was a room with one more display of three large pieces surrounded by many shards of glasswork that were lit up and a little outside of what Chihuly usually creates but was also visually beautiful and interesting.
the gift shop
There are two kinds of gift shops that I simply adore, the gift shops in museums and at art exhibits. I love looking through the themed items that they offer, and I try to get something if possible, usually a Christmas Ornament. For this trip I did pick up one of the glass ornaments in the blue and red swirl pattern. You could also purchase a Chihuly piece of your own, but the vases alone are $9,000 and while I do not ever plan to own one, they are still pretty to look at and appreciate.
The entire trip to Asheville was such a lovely experience. Everything from my trip to downtown, to the cozy hotel, Antler Hill Village, Biltmore Estate and Gardens and then Chihuly Exhibit exceeded my expectations. This was a solo trip for me that I think everyone should have at some point in their life. To just take time out to go on a trip that they can enjoy and savor like they want. One thing I always learn from Asheville is to elevate my everyday surroundings into one of elegant beauty and luxury and I will keep returning to Asheville again and again to enjoy the beauty that only this small mountain town stirs within me.
Beth says
Beautiful pictures! I love Chihuly. In my city, Grand Rapids, Michigan, we have Meijer Gardens Botanical Garden & Sculpture Park (which won best botanical garden in the country this year and last year and is only 5 minutes from my house!). They have one of Chihuly’s big hanging glass pieces from a main ceiling and through the ceiling of the cafe they have the colorful flowers (like the ones in your photo) hung. It’s fun to grab lunch there and eat under that beautiful art! Saw the big Chihuly ceiling at the Bellagio in Vegas too!
Asheville is a special town! During the summers in college I was a camp counselor at a camp in Hendersonville, NC and on our days off we would go to Asheville. I lived in Raleigh for 3 years after college and it’s still my favorite city that I’ve lived in!
ThePetiteTresor says
I love that you an amazing garden and sculpture park where you live, it sounds so beautiful to visit. And that’s so fun that you also lived in NC too! Asheville is such a special town for sure. I love revisiting them or anywhere in the NC mountains really. I am also like you in that I have lived in a few places too, but Raleigh is my favorite city and that is why we moved back here in February and plan to stay for many years.