Image Courtesy of The Helis Foundation

Rose-Colored Glass Towers: Chihuly’s Roseate Tower is Leaving City Park

09:00 September 30, 2020
By: Lawrence Bourgeois

Dale Chihuly, a glassworker of considerable renown and acclaim, graced New Orleans's Botanical Garden in City Park with his towering floral artwork aptly named "Rose Crystal Tower" back in 2018. The gorgeous, colossal tower is composed of a glassy-plastic compound as well as steel and stands at an impressive 22 feet tall. Seeing as how the installment was only a temporary loan, any interested parties should make a concerted effort to view this masterpiece in person before it is whisked out of the Botanical Gardens come the new year.

Chihuly has been surprising and innovating in the field of glasswork for a staggering 50 years now, and his continued production of masterpieces like Rose Crystal Tower cement his name among the true envelope-pushers of the crowd. Pictures and descriptions often fail to do such artwork justice, so it is important for you to actually visit this in-person to be able to fully appreciate the craftsmanship. Chihuly is quite the proficient artist, with hundreds of his works present in museums and exhibits across the nation. Part of the magic of the Rose Crystal Tower, however, is that it is not locked down in any museum or regulated space. Chihuly and the City of New Orleans made a conscious decision to have it placed in a fairly open area of the park, where it looms silently in a dazzling sort of way.

The prowess of the artist cannot be understated; as any glassworker knows, even small pieces can be a true pain to perfect in crafting. Forging titanic, looming entities in the field is an entirely different realm, and it takes a true master to be able to do so as deftly as Chihuly has and continues to do. The Rose Crystal Tower will no longer be in City Park come the first of the year, so please visit it while you still have the chance.

City Park Botanical Garden: 5 Victory Ave., City Park, neworleanscitypark.com/botanical-garden

For more information on Chihuly, go to Chihuly.com.

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