In the late 1950s, when the ceramicist and professor Harvey K. Littleton encouraged his students to adapt the artful Italian methods of glassblowing, American glassblowing began to take shape. Among Littleton’s students was Dale Chihuly. His fantastical Laguna Murano Chandelier serves as a centerpiece in what’s considered the first-ever exhibition to closely examine the influences of Venetian glass-working techniques on the American Studio Glass movement. Chihuly’s monumental installation, whose five golden, curling components (two hanging, three standing) the artist created in 1996 with the Venetian masters Lino Tagliapietra and Pino Signoretto, is one of more than 150 glass vessels, sculptures, and installations included in the exhibition. —J.V.