Art Talk: Macchia

I really liked the Macchia series. The patterns and designs and flow of the bowl really are wonderful.

He started the series in the 1980s.

Macchia (Italian for "spot" explore unexpected and often wildly contrasting color combinations

Inspired by the desire to deploy all 300 colors in his hotshop, Chihuly developed new methods for layering colors that would allow for contrast between the interior and exterior of the forms.

The application of the white interior layer, he calls "clouds" helps to keep the layered colors from melding. The exterior incorporates further color through fusing colored glass chips to create a spotted effect allowing for endless, vibrant combinations.

Here is a link on the Chihuly website about Macchia and is shows the process.

Here is an up-close look at the exterior