RICHMOND, Va. – Internationally renowned artist Dale Chihuly will have a major, site-specific exhibition of his work at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts from Oct. 20, 2012 through Feb. 10, 2013. VMFA’s award-winning and light-infused McGlothlin Wing designed by Rick Mather + SMBW, will provide a dramatic setting for the large scale installations and sculptures by this Seattle-based artist.

“Chihuly is a phenomenon of the art world,” said Director Alex Nyerges. “His magical glass creations have captured the imagination of audiences worldwide, and he is the most popular and recognized artist working in the field today. Indeed, he is one of the most widely appreciated contemporary artists working in any medium.”

Chihuly’s art remains at the cutting edge of the technical and virtuoso possibilities of glass as a medium. At VMFA he will install work in the 12,000-square-foot special exhibition galleries as well as other parts of the museum. The VMFA exhibition includes many iconic works for which Chihuly is known—Ikebana, Mille Fiori, Chandeliers, Tabac Baskets, Venetians, Boats, Persian Ceiling—as well as site specific installations, taking advantage of the soaring atrium and reflecting pools of VMFA’s McGlothlin Wing.

The presentation at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts is Chihuly’s third major U.S. museum exhibition in recent years. Record-breaking crowds attended the Chihuly exhibitions at the de Young Museum in San Francisco in 2008 and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, in 2011. Chihuly is renowned for his ambitious architectural installations around the world, in historic cities, public museums and gardens. Ninety-seven exhibitions in seven countries have presented artworks by the artist during the last decade, which have been enjoyed by more than 10 million visitors. Chihuly is credited with revolutionizing the Studio Glass movement and elevating the medium of glass from the realm of craft to fine art.

For details log on to www.vmfa.museum/chihuly or call 804.340.1405