Paolo Venini
Paolo Venini (12 January 1895– 22 July 1959)
Early life and education
Venini was born in the town of
Murano glassworks
In 1921 Venini and Cappellin opened a glass factory called Vetri Soffiati Muranesi Cappellin Venini & C. on the islands of
Their plans went quickly awry, however, when Rioda died before production had begun. Several of the principal glassblowers decamped to found a competitor firm under the name Successori Andrea Rioda. Nonetheless, the venture was successfully launched and prospered with support from the founders' distribution contacts in Milan. The firm also benefited from a commitment to introducing new, modern design concepts.
Following disputes, Cappellin withdrew from the firm in 1925, taking most of the firm's master glassblowers and launching a competitor. Venini reorganized with new glassblowers and, first as Vetro Soffiati Muranesi Venini & C. (V.S.M. Venini & C.), and later simply Venini & C., achieving a position as a design leader among Murano firms.[5] The company entrusted the creative direction to Murano sculptor Napoleone Martinuzzi , although Paolo Venini himself played a role in designing several of the company's best-known products, including the "Fazzoletto" (handkerchief) series, which he created with designer Fulvio Bianconi.[2][6] Venini embarked on collaborations with architects and designers such as Cini Boeri, Tomaso Buzzi , Gio Ponti, Carlo Scarpa, Ettore Sottsass, Alessandro Mendini, Tapio Wirkkala, Gae Aulenti, Tyra Lundgren, Mona Morales-Schildt, and Massimo Vignelli (who would also go on to design the company's new graphic identity and logo in 1982).[3][7] The ethos was to "take the Murano tradition of glass blowing and combine it with the French fashion industry's tradition of using designers."[1] The practice of working with notable designers has continued and includes more recent collaborations with Tadao Ando, Asymptote, Barber & Osgerby, the Campana brothers, and Peter Marino.[8]
Following Venini's death in 1959, the company continued for over twenty years under the management of other family members and was then sold in 1985.[citation needed]
In 1997 Società Venini S.p.A. was acquired by Royal Scandinavia group.
In 2001, the company was sold to Italian Luxury Industries Group, and subsequently acquired by Damiani S.p.A. in 2016.[11]
Exhibitions
On the occasion of the opening of the newly founded Frauenau Glass Museum on May 6, 1975, the museum presented a special exhibition Venini-Murano with works from the Wolfgang Kermer collection for the first time in Germany.[12]
In 2002 the Fondation Cartier pour l’Art Contemporain staged an exhibition called “Fragilisme di Alessandro Mendini” the centrepiece of which was a Venini glass sculpture titled "Guerrier de Verre".[13][14]
Publications
- Carl I. Gable, Murano Magic: Complete Guide to Venetian Glass, its History and Artists (Schiffer, 2004), pp. 76–79, 232–234. ISBN 0-7643-1946-9.
- Anna Venini Diaz de Santillana, Venini: Catalogue Raisonné 1921–1986 (Skira, 2000). ISBN 88-8118-651-9.
- Deboni, Franco (2007). Venini glass. Pierre Rosenberg. Turin: Umberto Allemandi. OCLC 163580797.
- Venini, Paolo (2016). Paolo Venini and his furnace. Paolo Venini, Marino Barovier, Carla Sonego, Stanze del vetro (1 ed.). Milano. )
References
- ^ a b "Guide to buying Venini glass". 15 October 2015.
- ^ a b "Exquisite experiments". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. 20 May 2007. Retrieved 2009-11-18.[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b "Venini Centenario – The History". Venini Company Site. Retrieved 2022-10-06.
- ^ Daltro, Ana Luiza (2022-09-07). "Venetian Glassmakers—New Techniques, AR Tools and Tradition". ArchiExpo e-Magazine. Retrieved 2022-10-06.
- ^ a b Lockwood, Howard J. "The Paths of Paolo Venini and Tyra Lundgren". Archived from the original on 2008-01-24. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
- ^ "A tradition of beauty:Murano glass work among the world's best". Tandem. 13 July 2008. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
- ^ Zancan, Roberto; Guzzardi, Luigi (2022-09-29). "Venini, the company that reinvented glass". Domus Magazine. Editoriale Domus Spa. Retrieved 2022-10-06.
- ^ "Venini Designers". Venini Company Site. Retrieved 2022-10-06.
- ^ simone. "Venini: Murano glass company sold to Royal Copenhagen | GlassOnline.com – The World's Leading Glass Industry Website". Retrieved 2022-10-06.
- ^ "MOSTRA Royal Scandinavia con gli argenti di Jensen, – la Repubblica.it". Archivio – la Repubblica.it (in Italian). 13 May 1999. Retrieved 2022-10-06.
- ^ Zargani, Luisa (2016-01-20). "Damiani Family Buys Venini". WWD. Retrieved 2022-10-06.
- ^ Alfons Hannes, Wolfgang Kermer: Venini-Murano: 65 Gläser der Sammlung Kermer, Sonderausstellung Glasmuseum Frauenau, 6. Mai bis 28. September 1975, ed. Gemeinde Frauenau, 1975.
- ^ "Fragilisme". Fondation Cartier pour l'art contemporain. Retrieved 2022-10-06.
- ^ "Alessandro Mendini alla Fondation Cartier". www.domusweb.it. Retrieved 2022-10-06.
External links
- Official website
- Venini collection at MoMA.org
- Venice Glass Museum, Murano
- Saturated: The Allure and Science of Color (Cooper Hewitt Museum, New York)
- The Senses: Design Beyond Vision (Cooper Hewitt Museum, New York)