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March 2000, Napa Valley, California - Napa Valley Wine Auction Chair Nancy Andrus of Pine Ridge Winery has announced that the 20th Annual Napa Valley Wine Auction will feature the art of internationally renowned glass artist, Dale Chihuly. Chihuly has been selected to carry out the visual representation of the event's theme, "Kaleidoscope 2000, celebrating the unique role glass has played in winemaking.
Through the centuries, glass has been an important element in the storage and transportation of wine as well as, through drinking vessels, an integral part of the enjoyment of wine. The kaleidoscope, traditionally enclosing bits of colorful glass, reflects the colorful, fun and constantly evolving Napa Valley wine community as it celebrates the beginning of the next millennium. Chihuly, famous for his large-scale, wildly colorful and fantastic representations in blown glass, expands the theme of this year's Auction to a level never before attempted.
In addition to his creation of the "Kaleidoscope 2000" poster, Chihuly's celebration of the event theme will begin with an installation at Meadowood Napa Valley throughout the four-day period of the Auction. In recognition of the importance of this very important artistic event, Andrus and the Napa Valley Wine Auction have additionally arranged for four major installations to be placed throughout Napa Valley for public viewing, at no charge, throughout the Summer of 2000. From June 1 through September 4, individual installations will reside at Clos Pegase, Niebaum-Coppola Estate Winery, Pine Ridge Winery and Robert Mondavi Winery. The Napa Valley Museum will also host an exhibition of Chihuly's smaller works.
America's first designated National Living Treasure, Chihuly's work is found in the finest museums around the world. He also has created massive outdoor installations in Japan, Mexico, Ireland and Finland. His Italian project, consisting of six 40-foot containers of glass, blown by 50 glassblowers and installed in the campos and canals of Venice, was the subject of the first high-definition television special, aired on PBS.
His current installation at the Tower of David Museum of the History of Jerusalem is the largest exhibition ever mounted by the museum and consists of more than 10,000 pieces of individually blown glass. His commercial installations include the 30x70x15 foot Fiore de Como sculpture at Bellagio in Las Vegas that is made from more than 2,000 pieces of glass covering 2,000 square feet of ceiling.
In this year 2000, the 20th annual Napa Valley Wine Auction celebrates the distribution of $20 million, contributed collectively in as many years, to local non-profit health care, housing and youth development organizations in Napa County. Now the world's largest and most successful wine charity event, the Auction attracts about 1800 attendees from throughout the world and is annually supported by more than 1000 community volunteers.
The four days of wine tasting, dining, and bidding on private donor lots, barrel lots, art and the live auction have become legendary in the world of charity auctions. The Napa Valley Wine Auction is sponsored by the Napa Valley Vintners Association, a non-profit, professional trade organization representing 174 Napa Valley wineries. The complete Auction package is $2,000 per couple. A limited number of day passes are available. For more information or to request an Auction invitation package, please phone 800.982.1371 and press 4 on your touch-tone phone.
Contact: Monty Sander or Tom Fuller
707.253.8503 or 707.253.0868
monsan@aol.com or tafuller@pacbell.net
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