Captivating CHIHULY draws over 300,000 visitors to the ROM

TORONTO, January 12, 2017 — The Royal Ontario Museum’s (ROM) CHIHULY exhibition brought vibrant colour to Toronto and an impressive number of visitors to the Museum. From the exhibition’s opening on June 25, 2016 to its January 8, 2017 closing, 313,708 visitors enjoyed the mesmerizing artworks of internationally acclaimed artist Dale Chihuly. CHIHULY, which ranked among the ROM’s top exhibitions for attendance, showcased 11 large-scaled works, some newly created for the ROM’s unique Garfield Weston Exhibition Hall, in addition to Chihuly series favourites. Immediately resonating with visitors, the exhibition’s popularity prompted an extension from its original closing date.

Enjoyed by visitors of all ages, CHIHULY has positioned the Museum to repeat last year’s impressive admission numbers of over one million visitors. The exhibition’s visually stunning and colourful artworks also inspired ROM visitors to share 18,400 images via social media (#ChihulyTO).

From December 26, 2016 to January 8, 2017, the ROM offered extended hours during ROM for the Holidays (RFTH) to accommodate the demand for the popular exhibition’s final days. Over 100,000 people, including an extraordinary 10,000 visitors on December 28, enjoyed two weeks of CHIHULY inspired family programming. 

About Dale Chihuly

For 50 years, Dale Chihuly’s monumental works have defied his material’s fragility. His pieces bring together a centuries-old team approach to glass-blowing with his unique artistic vision—resulting in ground-breaking artworks. Renowned for his ambitious site-specific architectural installations in public spaces, he has exhibited in museums and gardens worldwide. Major exhibitions include Chihuly over Venice (1995-96), Chihuly in the Light of Jerusalem (1999), Garden Cycle (2001–present), de Young Museum in San Francisco (2008), the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (2011), Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond (2012), and the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Montreal (2013). Chihuly Garden and Glass opened at Seattle Center in 2012. 

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This exhibition is organized by the ROM in cooperation with Dale Chihuly. The work displayed is protected by copyright and any copying is expressly prohibited.

The artist permits and encourages photography of the artwork in this exhibition for educational and non-commercial uses only.

This exhibition has been financially assisted by the Ontario Cultural Attractions Fund, a program of the Government of Ontario through the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport, administered by the Ontario Cultural Attractions Fund Corporation. 

ABOUT THE ROM

Opened in 1914, the ROM’s collections comprise over six million objects and specimens and its galleries showcase art, culture, and nature. Among the world’s most renowned museums, the ROM is Canada’s largest with the dual mandate of natural history and world cultures. The Renaissance ROM expansion project (2007) retrieved the best of the Museum’s beautiful historic architecture while also merging its iconic heritage building with the Studio Daniel Libeskind-designed Michael Lee-Chin Crystal. The ROM is the country’s largest field research institution and a world leader in areas encompassing biodiversity, palaeontology, and earth sciences to archaeology, ethnology, and visual culture—originating new information towards a global understanding of historical and modern change in the natural and cultural worlds. For tickets and 24-hour information in English and French, visit www.rom.on.ca or call 416.586.8000. For Membership enquiries, please call 416.586.5700

CONTACT
Wendy Vincent
Bilingual Publicist
wendyv@rom.on.ca
416.586.5547