MCM "Fazzoletto" Chandelier in "Zanfirico" Glass by Fulvio Bianconi for Venini
About the Item
- Creator:Venini (Manufacturer),Fulvio Bianconi (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 29.93 in (76 cm)Diameter: 13.78 in (35 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1950s
- Condition:Wiring has been updated.
- Seller Location:Merida, MX
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU2602122311872
Fulvio Bianconi
For a range of work that includes everything from illustrating thousands of books and other publications to his role as a visionary glassmaker, Fulvio Bianconi is remembered as one of the most innovative cross-disciplinarian artists of the postwar era.
Born in Ponte di Brenta in 1915, Bianconi showed a prodigious talent for drawing at an early age and, as a teenager, earned money as a portraitist. He also worked as an apprentice decorator in his youth at the Murano glass furnaces, where he first discovered the art of glassmaking.
In 1933, he moved to Milan to pursue a career as a graphic artist, and it was there he met Dino Villani, a painter who had ties to some of Milan’s most prestigious publishing houses and advertising firms. However, at the onset of World War II, Bianconi paused his graphic design ambitions and joined the army. In 1944, he narrowly escaped the infamous Via Rasella Nazi raids in German-occupied Rome.
Following the war, Bianconi went to work designing perfume bottles for the Milan perfume house Giviemme at Venini glassworks, where he worked with glass masters Ermete and Arturo Biassuto. Bianconi became one of Venini’s most influential glass designers — and was appointed artistic director following Carlo Scarpa — known for his bold use of color, modern style and unique, playful designs.
Among Bianconi's most iconic works in glass are the series of glass figures from the Commedia dell’Arte, his remarkably fluid bowls, and the patchwork “Pezzato” technique — his colorful vases created with this technique feature patterns that resemble those of a patchwork quilt. Works made in this fashion caused a sensation at the 25th Venice Biennale in 1950.
Venini co-founder 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 worked with several other glass studios, including Cenedese in 1954 and Vistosi in 1963, creating decorative vessels, bowls, hourglasses and sculptures. He was also a graphic designer with the Italian publishing house Garzanti for nearly 30 years. Bianconi’s portfolio of graphic design included work for FIAT, Pathé and Pirelli, among others.
Bianconi’s glassworks are held in museum collections worldwide, including London’s Victoria and Albert Museum, the Museum of Modern Art and the Corning Museum of Glass in New York. The artist died in 1996.
On 1stDibs, discover a range of vintage Fulvio Bianconi decorative objects, glassware and lighting.
Venini
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.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Merida, Mexico
- Return PolicyThis item cannot be returned.
- 1940s Venini Lantern in Murano Glass by Fulvio BianconiBy Fulvio Bianconi, VeniniLocated in Merida, YucatanDesigner: Fulvio Bianconi (1915-1996) Ceiling Light / lantern circa 1940s, manufactured by Venini in multicoloured Murano blown glass and steel armature. The glass presents no d...Category
Vintage 1940s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsIron
- MCM Murano Glass Chandelier by Toni Zuccheri for Venini, Italy, ca. 1970By Venini, Toni ZuccheriLocated in Merida, YucatanLarge Mid-Century Modern chandelier in hand blown Murano glass. This model was designed by Toni Zuccheri and manufactured by Venini in Murano Italy circa 1970. The pieces are execute...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsMurano Glass
- Venini, 'Tessuto' Chandelier, circa 1970 in Murano GlassBy VeniniLocated in Merida, YucatanBeautiful and large Mid-century Modern pendant light in white and clear hand blown Murano glass, attributed to Venini, circa 1970.Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsBlown Glass
- Venini, ´Tessuto´Chandelier, circa 1970 in Murano GlassBy VeniniLocated in Merida, YucatanBeautiful and large pendant light in white and clear handblown Murano glass, attributed to Venini, circa 1970.Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsBlown Glass
- MCM Chandelier by Carlo Nason for Mazzega in Murano Glass, circa 1968By Carlo Nason, AVMazzegaLocated in Merida, YucatanMid-Century Modern chandelier, designed by Carlo Nason for Mazzega. Manufactured in Iridescent Murano glass. Murano, Italy, ca. 1968.Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsMurano Glass
- Large Mid-Century Modern Sphere Chandelier in Murano Glass by Venini, circa 1970By VeniniLocated in Merida, YucatanLarge Space Age pendant light in white and brown striped hand blown Murano glass, attributed to Venini, circa 1970.Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsBlown Glass
- Murano Glass Floor Lamp by Fulvio Bianconi for VeniniBy Fulvio BianconiLocated in New York, NYFantastic floor lamp in red and dark green glass. Designed during the 1950s by Fulvio Bianconi for Venini Dimensions given without shade With shade: Diameter 60 cm, high 168 cm.Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Floor Lamps
MaterialsGlass
- Murano Glass Chandelier by Venini for Camer GlassBy Venini, Camer GlassLocated in West Palm Beach, FLThis stylish and chic 1970s Venini Murano glass chandelier will make a definite statement with its clear and smokey topaz prisms which catch the light beautifullly. Note: Dimension...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsStainless Steel
- Fulvio Bianconi Venini Italian Midcentury Wall Sconces in Pink Murano GlassBy Paolo Venini, Fulvio BianconiLocated in Morazzone, VareseGorgeous and rare pair of wall sconces handcrafted from Murano Glass Master Fulvio Bianconi for Venini during the 1950s. Both wall lights are made of pink and white swirled Murano ar...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces
MaterialsBrass
- Venini Fazzoletto Murano Glass Suspension LampBy VeniniLocated in Taranto, ITWonderful hanging lamp in the shape of Di fazzoletto easily attributed to Venini. In excellent conservative condition, no cosmetic or structural defects to report, only slight and o...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsMurano Glass
- Murano Glass Ceiling Pendant in Zanfirico Glass by Venini, AttributedBy Paolo VeniniLocated in Brooklyn, NYMurano ceiling pendant with Zanfirico glass. Italy, 1960s. Rare and absolutely exquisite glass making technique with unusually large size. Height adjustable. Rewired for US. Takes on...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsBrass
- Murano Glass Chandelier by Toni Zuccheri for VeniniBy Toni Zuccheri, VeniniLocated in Houston, TXMurano glass chandelier by Toni Zuccheri For Venini. Our unusual vintage Italian chandelier, pendant or lantern is comprised of...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsChrome