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Venini, founded by Paolo Venini, is a world-famous glassware company established on the industrious island of Murano, Italy. Its origins trace back to 1921, when Venetian art and antiquities dealer Giacomo Cappellin convinced the young lawyer Venini to launch the glass enterprise Cappellin Venini & C. Following a dispute with the artistic director Vittorio Zecchin four years later, the business was split between the two partners. This was a defining moment for Venini’s company, which he named Vetri Soffiati Muranesi Venini & C. Under the new artistic direction of the visionary Napoleone Martinuzzi, the glasshouse flourished and developed a remarkable reputation for creating exquisite glass that was both highly innovative in design and technique.
In the early years, experimentation of new opaque, layered and bubble glass techniques encouraged an exploration of original new forms. The cutting-edge designs were received positively by a number of important Italian art fairs, including the Venice Biennale, Monza and the Triennale di Milano. During this period, Venini also went into partnership with notable designers such as Gio Ponti and Pietro Chiesa to form Il Labirinto, an association that promoted Modern Design. In 1932 Venini’s modernist vision for the company came into fruition when renowned architects Tomaso Buzzi and Carlo Scarpa took over the artistic directorship. Scarpa’s influence is particularly clear as many of the techniques created following his appointment reflect his fascination of how light and glass interact. Notably, Venini himself also played an instrumental role in creating some of the most famous designs the glasshouse produced, such as the ‘Fazzoletto’ (handkerchief) series in collaboration with Fulvio Bianconi.
After the second world war, the company continued to create products in a modern style thanks to their collaboration with a number of highly regarded mid-century designers and architects. When Venini died in 1959, the company remained within the family until it was acquired by the Gardini and Ferruzzi families in the mid-1980s and then later in 2001 by Italian Luxury Industries. In 2011, Venini celebrated its 90th anniversary with a travelling exhibition that was held at the Glass Museum of Murano, Palazzo Grassi and Punta della Dogana in Venice, the Shanghai Museum of Glass, and the Bagatti Valsecchi Museum in Milan. Today, Venini’s own museum arguably boasts the world’s most significant private collection of 20th century glass. Venini’s outstanding influence on design history is also internationally recognised by the most prestigious museums, including The Louvre, V&A and MoMA, where Venini glass is part of their permanent collection.
