Chihuly Glass
The Glass Wonders of
DALE CHIHULY
It all started with a matzah and a joke. At Passover, at the time of finding the afikoman, a ritual hiding of a piece of matzah at the seder, Donna Schneier, mother of Rabbi Marc Schneier, asked her son what he wanted for finding the afikoman. The Rabbi admired her collection of Chihuly glass and replied “I want you to introduce me to Dale Chihuly.”
Meeting
DALE CHIHULY
In June of 2021, mother and son Schneier, Hampton Synagogue President Carol Levin and about 30 other members of the synagogue traveled to Washington State to meet Chihuly at his Seattle studio. A “great synergy” was felt as the details of the commission were discussed, and when the Hampton Synagogue members left Washington, they did so with a promising new partnership formed. For her tremendous contribution to this exciting arrangement, Donna asked one thing of her son: a small plaque on Jack’s House that reads, “Thank You, Mom.”
Dale Chihuly
Fiori
“The vibrant colors, which are inspired by the ‘ephod,’ communicate so brilliantly when the sun is shining through,” Keri Schroeder, Chihuly Studio director of sales explains. The ephod are sacred breastplates worn by the Jewish high priests of ancient Israel’s Holy Temple, and are only one of the Biblical narrative elements woven into Chihuly’s works at Hampton Synagogue. A set of 12 Fiori forms found in the chapel specifically use the colors of the original 12 Tribes of Israel, and even the total number of Fiori, 36 (a multiple of 18), is symbolic due to the number 18’s status as the Hebrew word/number for life — both serving as further proof that Chihuly has certainly done his research.
The
ETERNAL LIGHT
Throughout his career, Chihuly’s focus has been to explore the relationship between light, space and form, and to study the power of light through transparent media. Also on view now is Chihuly’s take on an “Eternal Light,” a hanging lantern that represents the light that burned perpetually in the Holy Temple. This piece was designed in the form of the artist’s iconic chandeliers using gold glass, which represents the crown atop the head of the Temple’s high priest.
The
MENORAH
The glass menorah is affixed to the wall across from the chapel windows, where its seven branches will act as a reminder of the similar the seven-branched menorah found at Israel’s Holy Temple.
The
CHILDREN'S HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL TOWER
Dedicated to the 1.5 million Jewish children killed during the genocide