Work of art: Missouri Botanical Garden features exhibit of Dale Chihuly glass

ST. LOUIS — Stepping into the Climatron at the Missouri Botanical Garden in St. Louis is like entering another world.

The first-ever geodesic dome greenhouse, the Climatron is already an exotic place filled with lush tropical plants such as orchids, banyan and palm trees, cycads and others thriving in a re-created rainforest environment. But for the next several months, there is an added fantasy element: Dale Chihuly's "Glass in the Garden" exhibit.

Utahns will perhaps best remember Chihuly from the exhibit that showcased his works at the 2002 Winter Olympics. The native of Tacoma, Wash., is known for his dramatic and imaginative glass creations — some of which decorated the galleries and ceilings of the Salt Lake Art Center and one of which still welcomes guests to Abravanel Hall.

Chihuly, who was born in 1941, studied glass blowing in college and then received a Fulbright grant to work at the Venini glassworks in Venice, Italy. He now directs a team of studio assistants who execute his ideas. His work is displayed in more than 200 museums around the world.

Since the 2002 Winter Olympics, Chihuly has turned "gardener." Inspired by his mother's love of plants and fascinated by the glass architecture of conservatories, Chihuly has begun incorporating his unique glasswork into natural, garden settings.

The exhibit at the Missouri Botanical Garden is not a traveling show, explains Lynn Kerkemeyer, special exhibits marketing manager. "I think we're the seventh garden to do a Chihuly show, but each one is done specifically for that site. Some of the pieces are the same, but a lot of it is new glass. The sunburst on our Rose Garden trellis, for example, was blown just for us." Chihuly visited the garden four different times to study and plan ways to incorporate his creations into the garden.

Chihuly's first garden show was in Chicago several years ago, "and word spread rapidly in the garden community," says Kerkemeyer. "Everyone was so impressed with how the art and plants juxtaposed."

Suddenly, everyone wanted a Chihuly garden exhibit, and his studios had to start setting limits. But what was exciting, she says, is that "they called us. Missouri Botanical Garden has a reputation as one of the best in the world, and they wanted to come here."

More than four dozen installations are scattered throughout the garden. The majority are in the Climatron conservatory and the Shoenberg Temperate House, but a few others are positioned throughout nearby parts of the garden.

"Glass in the Garden" takes advantage of the unique vistas and vegetation of the Missouri Botanical Garden and can "only be seen here and now," says Kerkemeyer.