Meanwhile the ubiquitous Mr Chihuly has built a bridge of glass connecting the waterside site with Tacoma's downtown area.

ECONOMIST: Glass on show

After stints working for Dale Chihuly and Frank Gehry (she has a degree in architecture), she opened Alison Berger Glassworks in 1994.

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After visiting Murano in 1968, Mr Chihuly returned to Seattle, luring a number of Venetian glassblowers, including Lino Tagliapietra, to join him.

ECONOMIST: Glass on show

Dale Chihuly, probably the best known American glassmaker, would certainly agree.

ECONOMIST: Glass on show

And later, a Dale Chihuly chandelier that graces their front entry.

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For Mr Chihuly, glassblowing was part of a counter-cultural trend.

ECONOMIST: Glass on show

Earlier this month, the glass master's home town of Tacoma, Washington, a 30-minute drive from the city, honoured Mr Chihuly by opening a museum dedicated to contemporary glass art.

ECONOMIST: Glass on show

The 3, 933-room Bellagio, famous for its in-house art collection that ranges from colourful Chihuly hand-blown glass sculptures to the current Claude Monet exhibition, is putting the finishing touches on its full remodel of all rooms and suites.

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All 80 game tables and 850 slot machines form a kind of orbit around a multi-story glass sun by American artist Dale Chihuly, around which swarm scantily-clad resort guests, crisply-attired croupiers and more than a few celebrities (rumoured recent sightings include Kim Kardashian and Justin Bieber).

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