Chihuly Seaforms

Book excerpt: Artforum art critic Joan Seeman Robinson discusses Chihuly's most exquisite and ethereal series, invoking the spontaneous automatic drawings of the Surrealists, the water lilies of Claude Monet, the action painting of Jackson Pollock, and, most cogently, Henri Matisse's Swimming Pool. Oceanographer and explorer Sylvia Earle, former Chief Scientist of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, finds in Chihuly's evocative 'Seaforms' not only 'reflections of skill, passion, teamwork and sheer genius' but also 'tributes' to the sea. Together these writers help to illuminate what many consider Chihuly's quintessential series, which was begun in 1980. The saturated colour of the 40 full-colour pages, including many double-page spreads, conveys the sensuousness of Chihuly's work.