Preview our exhibition Pure, Simple, and Beautiful Forms: Glass from the Collection. Join artist Richard Whiteley and retired Palm Springs Art Museum chief curator Katherine Hough for a virtual tour and discussion, moderated by Rochelle Steiner, Palm Springs Art Museum Chief Curator & Director of Public Programs and Education.

Richard Whiteley (British, born 1963), Reflector, 2011, cast and cold-worked glass, 26 ½ × 26 ½ × 7 ½ inches. Gift of David Kaplan and Glenn Ostergaard, 2019.188.

Curated by Hough and drawn from the museum’s permanent collection, Pure, Simple, and Beautiful Forms includes 22 works in glass by artists from the United States and abroad. At a time when we are confronted by tumultuous global issues that challenge the sustainability of the planet, this exhibition examines essential universal qualities of beauty, purity, and simplicity as created by artists working in glass. Featured in the exhibition is Richard Whiteley’s work, Reflector (2011), which utilizes enigmatic forms based on pure color, geometric underpinnings, and other mysterious structures.

Hough and Whiteley will guide a discussion about themes in the exhibition, including the idea of solitude seen through objects that channel the simple beauty of the world, as well as metaphysical landscapes and natural forms inspired by plants, the moon and the cosmos, and the invisible forces that captivate us. Whiteley will also share how he explores space through the use of glass in his practice, and his interests in the material qualities of the medium, which creates a dialogue between voids and solids.