If Dale Chihuly didn't personally blow that glass, do you still have a Chihuly?

Bill Radke talks to KUOW arts reporter Marcie Sillman and Seattle glass artist Benjamin Moore about a lawsuit that has been filed against Dale Chihuly and how artists work with assistants to create their pieces.

Chihuly is the target of a lawsuit from a former contractor who claims that he created some of the paintings that Chihuly signed his own name to. The contractor says he is owed money for his work.

Chihuly says he puts his name on works that he conceives and others carry out.

Moore, who has worked with Chihuly since 1974, called the lawsuit "utterly ridiculous" and that it is "completely legitimate" for artists to employ the help of skilled people to realize their ideas.

“Artists have always used assistants to help them execute their works," Moore said. “Prior to 1962 if any artist or designer had a concept or idea they would have to go to a glass factory and have a master craftsman execute it."

Sillman said that anybody who enters into a working relationship with Chihuly understands how studios work. "It’s not a shock to come in there and expect to be part of a team."

Produce for the Web by Kara McDermott.