History
Although not close to the sources of supply of raw materials, in particular the siliceous vitrifying sands and the soda, but also the wood, which until a few years ago came from Dalmatia; Venice and in particular Murano have built a solid tradition on glass processing. The choice, since 1300, to build the first ovens in Murano was due to the distance from the city center – any fires would not cause damages – and because the prevailing winds (Murano is in the northof Venice) would not bring the fumes in the city.
Over the centuries, the skill of the Murano masters has built a tradition of excellence in the processing and modeling of incandescent glass.
Called from abroad since ancient times, they have handed down their art generation after generation, perpetuating a profession in which the furnace experience remains the main school. The arts and commissions were able to intercept these qualities and, during the Renaissance and Baroque periods, the glass masters continued to reach innovation, combining technical skills with inventiveness and the ability to achieve refinement, elegance and also extravagance through shapes, colors and compositions.
With the end of the Venetian Republic in 1797, the modern tradition was born, which made ancient techniques a solid base for building its own prestige recognized all over the world.
Techniques
MURRINA
It is made by placing small tesserae or glass cannulae in the oven inside copper molds, after creating a fantasy composition. Once the whole thing is solidified, the glass is cut and added to objects or parts of ornamental objects.
SLAB
It is one of the most recent. It owes its name to the use of Murano glass plates: laid on a table, they constitute the first base on which other materials are laid, such as silver and 24kt gold leaf, together with other colored glass elements; at the end of the composition a further slab is laid over the previous one, and then goes into the furnace. When leaving the oven, the glass is ready to be cut into different shapes
BLOWING
Blowing is one of the best known techniques, once a privileged method for high-level compositions. The modeling is made when the glass is hot and through metal cannulaes, which allow to reach shapes that are extremely fine and elegant. Through the use of watermarks you can reach the well known lace effect inside the glass.