Wrapped in Tradition

The “Wrapped in Tradition” exhibit could have been hard to appreciate, but the complementing elements provided the needed context. Each element of the exhibit balanced another by adding another element of context. Take for example, the cylinders and the blankets. The cylinders alone were... well, cylinders. Then add in the blankets and the museum-goer can compare the Chihuly’s inspiration, his blanket collection, and his product, the cylinders. Going further, the historic blurbs described the significance of the blankets so that a reader could find more meaning in the history of the blankets, the blankets as art, or the blankets as inspiration for art. Also, the video depicting the creation of the cylinders illuminates the back-story behind the series. In comparison to the Museum of Glass in Tacoma, the series was not exciting. But the video explained parallels between blankets that wrap around a person like a cylinder wraps and both blanket and cylinder having aesthetic and utilitarian purposes. Therefore all of the elements of the exhibit serve to supplement context and insure that any visitor can walk away with some enjoyment.

That being said, the layout of the exhibit failed to attract attention to the cylinders. “Most people cruise through the glass, and just look at the blankets,” said Julia White, an exhibit monitor. And the blankets on display only represented half of Chihuly’s collection. A second set of blankets replaced the first. The arrangement was not effective in drawing attention to the cylinders, but maybe that wasn’t the goal. Regardless, the end product was an exhibit with many elements that played off of each other with natural synergy.

For me, I appreciated the exhibit from a historic angle. Growing up near Vancouver, WA, I’ve taken a field trip or two over to Fort Vancouver where an enthusiastic volunteer dressed like a trapper would explain the point system of the blankets and pelts, and ask us if we wanted to eat hard tack (rock hard biscuits for sailors) – answer no, always. I really like reading about the separate histories of the different manufactures, but what I wanted to know were the implications of “white” culture taking over the production of blankets. I wanted the Howard Zinn version.