Rialex Ceramix Centerpiece, Italy, Mid-20th Century

Vintage ceramic centerpiece is an original modern object realized in the mid-20th century. Original white ceramics. Made in Italy. Beautiful object realized in Italy with wh...

Soup bowl is an original decorative object realized in the mid-20th century in Bassano del Grappa. A vintage soup bowl decorated with a hand-made butterfly. White ceramics. On...

Richard Ginori Giovanni Gariboldi centerpiece ceramic, 1950, Italy.

Murano Technical Avventurina : We have specialized in the sale of Art Deco and Art Nouveau and Vintage styles since 1982. If you have any questions we are at your disposal.  Fratelli Toso, Venice One of the oldest glass factories established in Murano, Fratelli Toso was founded in 1854 by six brothers who loved the art of glassmaking. With over 150 years of experience in the field, the Toso family improved their techniques and nowadays are one of the top award-winning manufacturers of Murano glass. Technical Avventurina : Avventurina is a Murano glass-making technique developed on Murano island in the 17th century. I was first mentioned in a document dating from 1614 as "a kind of stone with gilt stars inside", at which point it already mesmerized people with the unusual and attractive look. The technique owes its name to the fact that its discovery happened by chance thanks to a lucky coincidence, when a glass artisan is said to have accidentally dropped some metal shavings into the glass mixture. Italians say it happened "all'avventura", which in Italian means "by chance". The first documented recipe for the technique dates from 1644, when Murano master glassmaker Giovanni Darduin described how Avventurina glass should be created. The recipe involves adding various metal oxides such as copper and iron to the hot glass mixture, which will cause tiny particles of the metals to crystallize as the glass mixture cools off. Complicating the process, for such crystallization to occur the furnace had to get fully extinguished, and the metal particles would slowly separate from the glass base over a few days during the natural cooling of the glass. This was a very difficult process from a logistical perspective, since every time a glass furnace got extinguished it caused work to be paused, and re-igniting it was quite a big process, as it took time to fully heat it to the desired temperature. As industrial revolution set foot on Murano in the nineteenth century, the process got a remake. Large volumes of fine Avventurina paste were made and then skillfully stretched into glass canes, which were then re-melted for jewelry-making under a small flame, or for glass blowing. This Avventurina paste received worldwide acclaim and re-ignited the fame of Murano Glass workshops due to its use in Salviati mosaics...