Under normal circumstances Fairchild Garden is closed after dark. However, from 6-8:00pm each Thursday night during the run of the Chihuly exhibit they are opening the garden to visitors for Tropical Chihuly Nights. This event is not part of the standard garden membership, and carries an additional fee: $20 for Garden members, and $30 for non-members.

Many of Chihuly's works have been specially illuminated for the evening shows, often beautifully, and the garden itself is entirely new after dark. (Sometimes dangerously new — watch that you don't stick your foot into some creature's burrow by the water.) And although the fee is somewhat high for two hours of walking through a very large park, this is a good fund-raising vehicle for the hurricane-ravaged garden.

Nonetheless, there are some problems, beginning with the timeframe. Unless you are free from the constraints of the traditional work day, getting all the way to the garden before the night ends will be difficult. Instead of 6-8:00, 7-9:00 would be easier (and draw more guests).

Lighting is also a problem. Several of the pieces are illuminated by spotlights, and if you don't stand in exactly the right location, you see more halogen than art. The towering stadium lights needed for the lowlands parking area also end up destroying the mood for some sections. As I walked back to the car at the end of the night I actually had a headache from the glare. That's not something I would expect from a night time walk through a garden.

And it suffers a bit from missed opportunities. As an example, the garden has fabulous water — small lakes, reflecting pools — yet these were largely ignored. Perhaps the technical aspects would be too difficult to manage, but I was hoping more would be done with the reflections of glass and light on water.

I am certain they are aware of these issues, though, and will correct them as much as possible during the six month run of the show. I hope they will, anyway, as when the exhibit works, it is simply stunning.

I recommend that you visit the garden during the day first, to see the art at its best. But if can work out the timing, you may want to come back in the evening to see it again, particularly once the temperature cools down, maybe in January.