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Art

Chihuly adds to an arts town

St. Petersburg already has the Dali museum, and the addition of the master of glass will build the city's fine art reputation.

By AARON SHAROCKMAN
Published October 13, 2006

ST. PETERSBURG - Together with a new home for Salvador Dali's artwork, a museum of Dale Chihuly's renowned glass works would recast St. Petersburg as one of the Southeast's pre-eminent arts cities, several art experts said Thursday.

A day after it was revealed that Chihuly's only U.S. museum would be built in St. Petersburg, the arts community began to dissect how significant the marriage could be.

The rebuilt Dali and the new 11,000-square-foot Chihuly could together draw more than 400,000 visitors a year, rivaling Atlanta's High Museum of Art, museum officials say. And the names Chihuly and Dali would inject an instant cache to the city and area's arts offerings.

"They are both outrageous, and spectacular, in their own ways," said Shane Fero, a North Carolina glass artist and president of the Glass Art Society. "There's nothing surreal about Dale's work, but I think it's so grandiose, it does kind of lend itself to Dali."

Like the Dali, Chihuly's museum will be unique, showcasing an evolution of the master glass artist's work, from Venetian boats to a large monumental glass tower. It will become the largest permanent collection in the United States, officials say.

The new museum, which would be built around a $2-million glass-blowing studio and viewing auditorium, will open in early 2009, officials say. The Chihuly and the rebuilt $30-million Dali museum could both be open before Tampa's 2009 Super Bowl.

The museums will add to an already impressive set of arts offerings in St. Petersburg.

The Florida Orchestra will build its headquarters in the city, and the Museum of Fine Arts plans to expand along the downtown waterfront.

The momentum is in stark contrast to Tampa, where city officials have struggled for years to rebuild its art museum.

"I would call our cultural renaissance in the city to be self propelling at this point," St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Baker said.

[Last modified October 13, 2006, 05:37:45]