Ulysses Cylinders by Dale Chihuly and Seaver Leslie with Flora C. Mace & Joey Kirkpatrick

Ulysses Cylinders by Dale Chihuly was a two-part exhibition that occupied the North and South Reading Rooms of the Frederick Ferris Thompson Memorial Library that flank the main entrance. Each room had an abundance of natural light to enhance Chihuly's elegant cylinders, which were installed on custom-designed pedestals and arranged according to the chronology of Joyce's masterwork. The exhibition includes an explanatory video and wall text as well as an exhibition brochure that ties Chihuly' s work to the long tradition of artists inspired by Ulysses.

To accompany the Ulysses Cylinders, the Archives & Special Collections Library mounted a related exhibition titled "James Joyce's Ulysses: Text and Art." A variety of editions from the 20th century were on display, including volumes illustrated by Eric Gill, Henri Matisse, and Robert Motherwell. Together these books outlined the history of Joyce's text, and also showed the role of artistic interpretation. This exhibition therefore provided context to the "Ulysses Cylinders," and allowed visitors to reflect more widely on the production and reception of Joyce's novel in western culture.