This video shows the creative flair of Fabiano Amadi, while he is creating a Murano Glass Large Bark Vase.

Go to Large Bark Vase page.

This video shows how Murano Glass Master Rita Cardi works, creating a Necklace set braclet and drop earrings.

Go to Necklace set braclet and drop earrings page.

In this video you can appreciate the artistic skills of Master Fabiano Amadi, creating a Museum Chalice in Murano blown glass.

Go to Museum Chalices section.

The art of glass in antiquity
One thing is for sure that ancient glass objects were produced in Fenicia in Egypt. Apparently the art of glass fusion in Egypt was born during the 17th dynasty: in this country it reached a high level of perfection. The remains of ancient glass workshops that used to work local raw materials, sand and natural soda, were found. The procedures and the substances used were only known to priests: the technique of filtering into moulds, like immersion, of terracotta objects, vases for example, into melted glass paste; different colours such as blue, yellow and orange were incorporated into the glass material for decorative purposes. Preserved in the secret of glass art it was not transmitted to Greece, the countries that wanted to use it had to turn to flattery and deception in order to conquer skilful artisans. During the Hellenistic period, the production of glass objects increased. The most important area for the production of glass was Alexandria: this is where the cutting technique of the surface of the glass object was born for decorative purposes. Having conquered Egypt the Romans chose the very best glass experts and led them to Italy, where the iron ‘blow pipe’ still used today, was invented. During the era of Nerone, glass was already an article of common use in Rome: subsequently the glass industry was also set up in other areas of the empire where suitable sand was available: in Spain, in Gallia.

Glass in the middle ages
Byzantium took glass techniques to a high level of development and conquered the international glass market and dominated it for approximately 500 years: in Byzantium the system of superimposing two layers of glass, the lower layer being covered with a sheet of gold that could be seen on the surface was invented. During the Carolingio era, glass was used in windows as glass panels. With the invention of iron strips that were used as supports, figures were created as in the case of mosaics. During the XII and XIII century, with the gothic style, the importance of coloured glass used in the architectural structures of cathedrals, grew. At the same time a huge increase in the production of cups, chalices, glasses and goblets was registered.

Murano glass
With the fall of Byzantium (1453) the glass industry and art continued in Venice, where they had already started to work five centuries before. In 1921 the Republic of Venice ordered the transfer of all working furnaces in the city centre to the island of Murano for safety reasons related to the fear of fire. The products made by Murano industries were soon to become very important on an international level. Venice attracted the very best glass experts in the world and was extremely jealous of this: each attempt to expatriate was severely punished. Initially famous for the production of glass for displays, tesseras and small glass pearls for chains, in the XV century Murano reached the highest level of international fame for the production of blown glass products due to specialised artisans of an extremely high technological and artistic level. In the following centuries it improved the glass paste technique and it was possible to create exceptional objects due to their lightness. Typical Murano glass products include the ‘reticello’, ‘avventurina’, ‘ghiaccio’ and ‘millefiori’ techniques, imitated in many countries throughout the world. With the end of the Venetian republic, Murano production was almost interrupted completely: only a few workshops were kept open. Glass activities started again during the second half of the XIX century: schools for future glass experts were set up (the one by the Seguso family was very famous). ]]>http://en.murano-glass-shop.it/murano-glass/the-history-of-glass/the-history-of-glass.htmlFri, 30 May 2008 13:54:25 GMThttp://en.murano-glass-shop.it/murano-glass/glass-blowing/glass-blowing.html Glass production, on an artisan level, has not changed at all throughout the centuries. No new advanced techniques have been invented after the blow pipe technique: the result depends most of all on the expertise and the artistic skills of the glass artisan.

If you visit a workshop in which glass objects are made and you assist all of the production phases (in Murano the glass experts are more than happy to provide the public with a demonstration of their skills), you will feel as though you have gone back in the centuries.

The crucible is removed from the furnace where the glass mixture is prepared.

The expert removes the quantity of material required from the crucible that is still hot and incandescent, using the tip of the blow tube: it is normally a large drop called a ‘bolus’.

Therefore with just a few fast operations, blowing in the tube as he rotates it at the same time, he shapes the object to be created with the help of pliers and scissors that his apprentice hands over to him. When the glass mixture cools down and solidifies during production, the object still to be completed and held by pliers with a very long handle, is heated in the furnace in order to simplify the shaping process.

As all of the phases of operations are due to improvisation of the artisan and the temperature of the paste, no objects will ever be identical.

]]>http://en.murano-glass-shop.it/murano-glass/glass-blowing/glass-blowing.htmlFri, 30 May 2008 13:49:33 GMThttp://en.murano-glass-shop.it/murano-glass/the-island-of-murano/the-island-of-murano.html
A small city in the Veneto region, it rises in the Venetian lagoon of five small islands separated by picturesque canals and connected by various bridges.

It is especially famous for its unique blown glass, created and worked by artisans specialised since the XIII century.

The art of glass achieved its maximum peak at the end of the XV century and in the XVI century and then continued until the fall of the republic and was only renewed during the second half of the XIX century. At the moment only some glass workshops are still open; the museum of glass art is extremely interesting. ]]>http://en.murano-glass-shop.it/murano-glass/the-island-of-murano/the-island-of-murano.htmlFri, 30 May 2008 12:31:24 GMThttp://en.murano-glass-shop.it/murano-glass/murano-and-the-venetian-glass/murano-and-the-venetian-glass.html Venetian glass has always represented a synonym of elegance and good taste, but not many people know the real millenary story of its fascinating and current nuances. Venetian glass boasts a millenary tradition as the first document that provides evidence of an active glass workshop in Venice dates back to more than one thousand years ago, precisely in 982.

In the dark periods of the history of humanity, in the middle ages, the art of Venetian glass, the heir of Islamic and Byzantine traditions, was characterised by the high level of its production.

Halfway between the thirteenth century and the fourteenth century important noble families from Europe had ordered glasses from important Venetian glass workshops, still to be found in the museums.

With the use of numerous and simple iron equipment, the glass experts model glass with the skills and accuracy that no school could ever teach and, just like in an ancient medieval laboratory, youngsters can learn the techniques and the art from old experts with the humbleness required by those who want to work in the world of glass.

The roots of Venetian traditions lie in the strong desire to enhance the ductility of glass and its possibility of being blown and shaped, therefore giving vent to the fantasies of experts that cannot be compared with any other materials.

During the last century this historical and artistic heritage was enhanced with the production of important pieces that were inspired by the history of Venetian glass, also combining new techniques and solutions that give each piece the possibility of integrating with the environment with a strong sensation of class and taste.

Each piece, the result of careful and laborious historical research, is destined to be re-evaluated in time and in reality it represents a unique piece as it has been made exclusively by hand without the help of moulds and modern equipment.

]]>http://en.murano-glass-shop.it/murano-glass/murano-and-the-venetian-glass/murano-and-the-venetian-glass.htmlFri, 30 May 2008 12:13:49 GMThttp://en.murano-glass-shop.it/murano-glass/what-is-glass/what-is-glass.html Glass is a product created from silicon and is considered a liquid with a high level of viscosity and not a real solid as it does not have a regular internal crystalline structure.

Glass is produced by means of fusion of silicon mixtures, such as quartz and sand and metallic carbonates (sodium, potassium, calcium, iron). Metallic silicates are formed from this reaction and form the glass.

Its varieties include: common glass, crystal colourless glass, glass for thermometers, glass for quartz etc.

In order to create coloured glass, small quantities of metallic oxides are added: iron for green, cobalt for blue, colloidal gold or copper for red, tin for milky coloured glass.

Fusion is created in highly heat resistant aluminium crucibles, heated in electric or gas ovens.

]]>http://en.murano-glass-shop.it/murano-glass/what-is-glass/what-is-glass.htmlFri, 30 May 2008 12:07:45 GMT