Welcome To The Glass Blowing Capital Of The World!
Of the many things that Venice Italy is known for, Murano blown glass is one of the most beautiful…here, glass is definitely “ART”:
As you can see, Murano glass is gorgeous, with vivid colors and designs – and yes, there are incredible glass chandeliers as well – we were told they take 15 Artists 4 months or more to create…so we of course had to see some in person!
Here’s a bit of a primer on Murano, and its location related to Venice.
Venice is a broad collection of islands in the Venice lagoon, and Murano is described this way by wikipedia:
Murano is a series of islands linked by bridges in the Venetian Lagoon, northern Italy. It lies about 1 mile north of Venice and measures about a mile across with a population of just over 5,000. It is famous for its glass making.
As this sculpture in the center of town shows, they are proud of their reputation and heritage.
Wikipedia adds:
Murano’s reputation as a center for glassmaking was born when the Venetian Republic, fearing fire and the destruction of the city’s mostly wooden buildings, ordered glassmakers to move their foundries to Murano in 1291. Murano glass is still associated with Venetian glass.
And is it! We headed out on a foggy morning – a water taxi taking a group of us from Venice to Murano – and this is how you leave Venice – by ducking!
Yes, taking the side “streets” out of Venice allow you to see some amazingly short bridges, and once away from the heart of the city, the lagoon opens up:
We took a tour boat across the lagoon, and it’s fascinating to speed past some areas of the Venice lagoon that have been abandoned to time:
We were told that some areas of the lagoon are barely six feet deep, and no more than 30-40 feet, so it’s a broad, flat coating of water over the land…and after 20 minutes or so, we pull up to the dock outside a glass factory:
The sun broke through and gave us a gorgeous welcome to the Signoretti glass blowing factory:
We headed inside, where we were led past the fiery glass furnaces – yes, you could feel the heat coming off of these ovens:
We were given a demonstration by the Artisans working that day: it all begins with a blob go molten glass rolled onto a steel pole – now watch as this Artist creates the pedals of a flower using his tongs:
What we saw next was truly spectacular: watch this video as a ball of hot glass is turned into a Stallion!
This was really fascinating to watch, a long-time art that continues today on an island in the Venice Lagoon! Also, these horses are for sale in the shop that is next door to the factory – because as you see, they can create one in just over two minutes!
Thanks to the Signoretti glass blowing factory and art gallery for showing us “art in action” – it’s a great trip over from Venice and a fantastic way to see art up close!
Speaking of art – and the magical beauty of Venice:
We had such a great time exploring this city by day and night – and just arriving in town – by boat – is truly magical as well…see that video here:
Let me know if you’ve had the chance to explore this floating city!
Categories: Art, Exotic Travel, Memoirs, Travel, Travel Adventures, Travel Memoir, Uncategorized
Such a fascinating art… fabulous …I have a horse made from glass at a local place in the Uk ( I collect miniature horses) but the Murano glass has some absolutely beautiful colours so vibrant 🙂 Works of Art 🙂
Carol, I really don’t know how my link to that 70’s film ended up in a comment…thank you for checking this link out instead – much more “viewer friendly!” And that said, the art of glasswork is truly spectacular to see!
It certainly is..The other post was ok…I am just not into cult films like that 🙂
Some of my favorite jewelry is glass blown that I got in Venice. Will have to make it over to Murano next time. We only had about 18 hours in Venice when we were there.
Molly, seeing it up close was cool, and the entire island is filled with factories and retail shops – a real experience! Thanks for the comment!
Great pictures John! And so cool seeing that ball of hot glass turn into a beautiful stallion.
Thanks! The showroom had works of art that were very expensive, as well as more modest stuff like this – a stallion was $85
I haven’t been to Murano, but I have seen similar glass factories in the UK. It is always fascinating to watch them create such work in so short a time.
Lovely colours in your photos, John. They brought the colourful glass to life.
Best wishes, Pete.
Thanks Pete, I’ve started to enhance them a bit to bring out the full color of the picture!
Nicely done, John. I think that’s just the right level. 🙂