More on Chihuly
When you write a long article about something there’s a lot of stuff that never makes it into the article, including how the writer got the story in the first place, what they think of the subject they’re writing about, what hoops they had to jump through to get people to talk, etc. This week in the paper, Jen Graves has a feature about Dale Chihuly’s lawsuits against glass artists he’s accusing of making knockoffs of his work. It’s a great story:
What’s bizarre about all this is that the small-time sales of a few Chihulyesque pieces in a couple of malls pose no threat to the worldwide Chihuly empire. But by suing his former employee, Chihuly himself is drawing attention to the fact that Chihuly is, in some senses, not the real deal. Whatever he wins in copyright, he stands to lose in public image. Chihuly is providing Rubino with a platform on which to call the bluff of Chihuly’s creativity.
For anyone who wants more on this story, now up on our website is a Q&A with Graves about her article, Chihuly, why no one involved would talk, etc. We’ll probably start doing these web-only Q&As with the writers of long arts pieces as a regular thing, since there’s always so much great backstory that never makes it into the paper.
that article was a real wank. everybody already knows the guy doesn't blow glass. nobody cares. a lot of people think the stuff looks cool. others think it's trendy junk. not much to add to that.