Beginning in the 1930s — and throughout the postwar years especially — Venini & Co. played a leading role in the revival of Italy’s high-end glass industry, pairing innovative modernist designers with the skilled artisans who created extraordinary chandeliers, sconces and other lighting in the centuries-old glass workshops on the Venetian island of Murano.
While the company’s co-founder, Paolo Venini (1895–1959), was himself a highly talented glassware designer, his true genius was to invite forward-thinking Italian and international designers to Murano’s hallowed workshops to create Venini pieces — among them Gio Ponti, Massimo Vignelli, Finnish designer Tapio Wirkkala, Thomas Stearns of the United States and Fulvio Bianconi.
Paolo Venini trained and practiced as a lawyer for a time, though his family had been involved with glassmaking for generations. After initially buying a share in a Venetian glass firm — he and antiques dealer Giacomo Cappellin established Vetri Soffiati Cappellin Venini & C. in 1921 — Venini took over the company as his own in 1925, and under his direction, it produced mainly classical Baroque designs.
In 1932, Venini hired the young Carlo Scarpa— who would later distinguish himself as an architect — as his lead designer. Scarpa, working in concert with practiced glass artisans, completely modernized Venini, introducing simple, pared-down forms; bright primary colors; and bold patterns such as stripes, banding and abstract compositions that utilized cross sections of murrine (glass rods).
Paolo Venini’s best designs are thought to be his two-color Clessidre hourglasses, produced from 1957 onward, and the Fazzoletto (“handkerchief”) vase, designed with Bianconi in 1949. Bianconi’s masterworks are considered by many to be his Pezzato works — colorful vases with patterns that resemble those of a patchwork quilt.
Other noteworthy and highly collectible vintage Venini works include Ponti’s dual-tone stoppered bottles (circa 1948); rare glass sculptures from the Doge series by Stearns, the first American to design for the firm; Vignelli’s striped lanterns of the 1960s; the Occhi vases with eyelet-shaped patterns by Tobia Scarpa (son of Carlo); and, with their almost zen purity, the Bolle (“bubbles”) bottles designed by Wirkkala in 1968.
With these works — and many others by some of the creative titans of the 20th and 21st centuries — Venini has produced one of the truly great bodies of work in modern design.
Find antique and vintage Venini chandeliers, serveware, table lamps, decorative objects and other furniture on 1stDibs.
VENINI Opachi Black Murano Glass Vase by Tobia Scarpa, Signed 2011, Italy
By Tobia Scarpa, Venini
Located in Venezia, IT
Venini Opachi vase, model 513.04, in Black Murano opaline glass, designed by Tobia Scarpa in 1960 and produced in 2011. Part of Venini’s refined Opachi collection, these vases are a...
Blown Glass, Murano Glass
Venini Regina Smoky Pulegoso Murano Glass Vase with Applied Metal Foil, 2011
By Rodolfo Dordoni, Venini
Located in Venezia, IT
VENINI vase Regina 515.14 Beautiful smoked satin-finished glass created using the Pulegose technique and metallic leaf decoration, Signed 2011 and accompanied by its original Venini ...
Blown Glass, Murano Glass
VENINI Dogon Vase Black color Murano Glass, Signed 2009, Made in Italy
By Venini
Located in Venezia, IT
Venini Dogon vase, model 706.86, produced in 2009 and accompanied by its original Venini box and paperwork. The Dogon vases belong to Venini’s latest generation of opaline glass crea...
Blown Glass, Murano Glass
VENINI vase Deco by Martinuzzi Black Murano Glass, Signed 2002, Made in Italy
By Napoleone Martinuzzi, Venini
Located in Venezia, IT
Venini Deco vase, model 707.10, produced in 2002, diamond signed Venini on the base and accompanied by its original Venini box and paperworks. The base is executed in a very deep ame...
Blown Glass, Murano Glass
VENINI vase Fazzoletto Black Murano Glass, Signed 2013, handmade in Italy
By Venini, Fulvio Bianconi
Located in Venezia, IT
Iconic Venini Fazzoletto vase, model 700.00, in Black opalino glass, Signed 2013 with box and paperwork. Hand-blown and finished by master glassmakers in Murano, with the characteri...
Blown Glass, Murano Glass
VENINI vase Re Smoky Pulegoso and Bronze Murano Glass, 90° Anniversary
By Rodolfo Dordoni, Venini
Located in Venezia, IT
VENINI vase RE 515.13 Smoky bubble and Bronze color Murano Glass, Signed 2011 and accompanied by its original Venini box and paperwork. Part of the iconic Re–Regina–Principe series ...
Blown Glass, Murano Glass
Tyra Lungren Murano glass black iridized vase circa 1960
By Venini
Located in Rio De Janeiro, RJ
Incredible Venini&C by Tyra Lungren Murano glass iridized black vase with two necks circa 1960
Murano Glass
Mid-Century Two-Toned Frosted Black Hand-Blown Murano Glass Vase by Venini
By Venini
Located in New York, NY
This elegant and subtly impactful Mid-Century Modernist Two-Toned Frosted Black Hand-Blown Murano Glass Vase is by Venini and originates from Italy during the latter half of the 20th...
Murano Glass
Massimo Micheluzzi Black Murano Glass Vase, Hand Blown and Battuto Cut, 2002
By Massimo Micheluzzi
Located in New York, NY
Contemporary Italian artist Massimo Micheluzzi's hand blown and battuto cut black Murano glass vase was made in 2002. Incised signature to underside: [Massimo Micheluzzi, Murano, 2002]. Image 6: Massimo Micheluzzi (Italian, born 1957) Artist's Bio: Born in Venice in 1957, Massimo Micheluzzi was introduced to the world of glass in the late 1970's as a young photographer for the renowned Venini glass factory, an extraordinary experience that over time will prove to be decisive. Following a long and fruitful apprenticeship in the furnace, Micheluzzi started his personal journey in the late 1990's. His work has constantly evolved since then as he continues to explore new ways of mastering the material, whilst always remaining ‘true’ to the nature of glass. Working alongside his master glassblower, Massimo Micheluzzi uses the techniques that have defined the Murano tradition intervening directly on each phase of the creative process. Striving to balance tradition and innovation, he applies these ancient crafts to achieve a uniquely modern aesthetic. Micheluzzi’s work is deeply embedded in the life and history of the city of Venice and constantly inspired by its watery surroundings and architecture. His eclectic body of work shifts between fluid and organic shapes, iridescent transparencies and opaque carved surfaces as well as elaborate colour combinations, mosaic patterns and sculptural forms. His works have exhibited in cities all over the world and are in some international museums and various public and private collections such as the The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, The Corning Museum of Glass in New York, Muse´e Des Arts De´coratifs de Paris, Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam, Museo del Vetro di Murano in Venice and Villa Necchi...
Blown Glass
Opalino Sabbiato Glass Vase in Black by Venini
By Venini
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Venini glass vase with slim, oval shaped body and funnel shaped neck. Perfect for indoor home decor as container or strong statement piece for any room. It appears in refined colo...
Art Glass
Venini Opalino Small Vase in Black Black Inside Murano Glass
By Venini
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Opalino small vase in Amber Murano glass by Venini. The Opalino vase is all about sophisticated and unique colors, thanks to the use of the traditional Opalino technique. This method...
Murano Glass
Murano Art Glass Blown Glass Black and Smoky Color Midcentury Vase, 2000
By Costantini
Located in Roma, Lazio
Stunning Murano glass vase. Note the beautiful hot-applied roses on the body of the vase. A superb smoky color with black roses. The Murano furnaces create an undeniably timeless des...
Murano Glass
