The Book, Cat, & Cat Book Lovers Almanac

of historical trivia regarding books, cats, and other animals. Actually this blog has evolved so that it is described better as a blog about cats in history and culture. And we take as a theme the advice of Aldous Huxley: If you want to be a writer, get some cats. Don't forget to see the archived articles linked at the bottom of the page.

September 20, 2014

September 20, 1941

Dale Chihuly (September 20, 1941) is a famous glass artist whose fans include a large portion of a general populace. Kind of like Kinkaide but --- the critics also, regard Chihuly highly. The organic forms of his blown glass sprout, hang, spring forth and wind up, across the world. Here is a detailed article about the man behind the glass, and it is worth checking out.

August 22, 2014 saw a less fortunate aspect of his fame occur. There was a break-in at the Denver Botanic Gardens and some of his sculpture was stolen. Here is the piece in question:






Several spikes were removed from Chihuly's installation. The piece is called "Cat Tails."

Regarding the value of the stolen art, Brian Vogt, CEO of Denver Botanic Gardens is quoted by a local news source:

"I am outraged by crime in general, but theft of something so cherished by the public very much upsets me," said Vogt.  The spikes were orange and red in color and part of the Cat Tails piece. "Maybe they could sell it to someone or keep it as a souvenir, but really no, it wouldn't have much value," said Sandy Sardella, owner of Pismo Fine Art Glass. "People have asked me a lot in the last 24 hours, about the value of these pieces. The value is the joy in their eyes," said Vogt. Denver Botanic Gardens said it is working closely with local authorities, but so far they have no suspects in this case.  Vogt told 7NEWS that security at the attraction is the tightest it's ever been in the garden's history.



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