Rex 5358 Ceiling Lamp in Glass and Polished Chrome, by Barovier&Toso

Partnerships come and go within the community of glass-making artisans on the Venetian island of Murano, where business relationships seem as complex as the shifting alliances in the notoriously acrimonious Italian parliament. Formed in 1942 by members of families with centuries of experience in the craft, Barovier&Toso has proven to be one of the most enduring and prosperous Italian glass manufactories of recent decades. Under the nearly 50-year artistic directorship of cofounder Ercole Barovier (1889–1974), the company created buoyant traditional pieces such as chandeliers, sconces and other lighting fixtures, and it pioneered an array of innovative modernist glass designs with bold colors, patterns and surfaces.

The Barovier dynasty began in 1295, when Jacobello Barovier, mentioned in historical documents as a master glassblower, began pinching, cutting, blowing and twisting a molten mixture of sand and minerals into incandescent works of art. It remained entirely family-owned until the mid-20th century, when it merged with another glassworks to become Barovier&Toso.

To appeal to gentler, more conservative tastes, Barovier&Toso produced a range of lilting, sinuous lighting pieces that are often described as embodying “Liberty Style” — the Italian term for Art Nouveau, taken from the name of famed London department store Liberty & Co., which promoted 19th-century organic textile designs and Arts and Crafts-style furniture in the manner of William Morris. The hallmarks of the style in Barovier&Toso works are elements of glass in the shape of thick leaves, fronds and flower petals, deployed along with other naturalistic ornament in sconces, pendants and chandeliers.

Ercole Barovier began his personal aesthetic transition toward modernism in the 1930s with his Primavera series of vases and animal sculptures — idiosyncratic milky-white and clear glass filled with tiny bubbles and hairline interior fissures that he produced for Artisti Barovier, a firm headed by his father and uncle. Later, with Barovier&Toso, he would explore such novel styles as the mosaic-like Pezzato glass; fluid Spiral patterns; the pebbly textured Barbarico line and the complex, layered and highly colored abstractions of the Oriente series of vases and bowls.

Traditional or modern, Barovier&Toso — still under family control — has produced one of the finest and most diverse catalogues of Murano glass in the last 100 years.

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Barovier&Toso is the most ancient glass company in the world, established in 1295 in Murano (Venice, Italy) where it is still based, devoted to maintaining and the innovation of the glass tradition. The company mission is to create high-end decorative lighting solutions – both classic and contemporary – that are timeless masterpieces unique for design, exquisite manufacture, technology fused with creativity, to inspire true emotions, positive feelings and special atmosphere. Barovier&Toso co-operate with selected showrooms, interior and lighting designers to work out the most proper solution for any projects: residential, hospitality (Four Seasons, Marriott, Ritz Carlton, Bulgari, Resorts and Casino, boutique hotels…), luxury brands flagship retail (Dolce & Gabbana, Louis Vuitton, Cartier…), corporate offices, public buildings and many others. All lighting products are manufactured in accordance with the EEC quality standards and security regulations. The majority of Barovier&Toso products have been approved by the most important product safety certification organizations (cULus, CCC, IMQ, etc.). The company is a truly international firm with over forty sales agents around the world. In addition to the one in Murano, Barovier&Toso has a main showroom in Milan.