"If I had one of these chandeliers in my house, I’d probably dress up, grab a glass of juice and enjoy the view,” said one of the guests at the opening day of the ‘Murano Artistic Glass Exhibition,’ on May 28 at the Italian Cultural Club. The exhibition ran from May 28 to May 30. Mrs. Inge Pharaon, owner of the Rosenthal Gallery, was delighted with the exhibition — saying it was “wunderbar” (wonderful in German). The idea that much of the glass was custom made particularly appealed to her. Murano is an island close to Venice; it has been known for its glass for centuries and most tourists visiting Venice spend at least a morning in the factories and shops of Murano. The Italian owners of Il Vetro Dei Dogi, Domenico Caminiti and Silvia Formentin, came to Jeddah laden with pieces of their handmade, blown glass with the cooperation from Valeria Santacesaria, the Italian Consulate General’s wife who organized the event.
Glassmakers, as Formentin explained, were known in Italy in the 11th century though some pieces exist which have been dated as early as the 7th or 8th centuries. During the 13th and 14th century, Venetian glass gained popularity because of the use of local quartz pebbles which were almost pure silica; the pebbles were ground into a fine clear sand and combined with another product known as Levantine soda ash on which the Venetians held a monopoly. Over time, glass chandeliers were made and became such status symbols that the palaces of Italian aristocrats or rich businessmen were considered incomplete without several elegant examples in various rooms.
According to Pliny the Elder, ancient Roman author and natural philosopher, the Phoenicians who lived in the middle east made the first glass about 3000 B.C. Pliny wrote, “The tradition is that a merchant ship laden with nitrum (soda and potash) was moored at this place. The sailors were preparing their meal on the beach, and not having stones to rest their pots on, they used lumps of nitrum from the ship. It fused and mixed with the sand on the shore and there soon flowed streams of a new translucent liquid. Thus did glass originate.” Over the years, it was discovered that the addition of metallic compounds and mineral oxides allowed glassmakers to produce a variety of colors which delighted the public and boosted the makers’ profits.
Formentin explained that each family has its own secrets passed from father to son, from one generation to another. Pointing at a white glass decorated with pieces of 24 carat gold, she said, “ The makers of this piece would never have left the room without finishing the whole piece.” That was the way that families kept their secrets and assured their livelihoods.
It is not only one person who works on a piece. “It is always the result of team work,” said Formentin, “and that is why it is so special to the beholder.” Usually a group of people — each one having his special skills and talent — work on a single piece. That is why when you buy a piece and hold it in your hands, you may feel that you are holding the story of people who worked together, making something unique for you. Formentin added that because the pieces are all handmade you can be 100 percent sure there is never another piece that is the same. There will always be a new shape, a new curve, new lines and new materials.
Formentin said that the big chandeliers are made of more than 1000 small pieces of glass. “Our skillful Murano glass masters blow each part, each vase and centerpiece and each small piece in the chandelier.” She added the beautiful flowers and leaves on the frame and the crests of the mounts and even the arms of the chandeliers are made of many small pieces of blown glass.
“The choice of colors and shapes is up to the consumer,” said Caminiti. “Whatever the consumer wants, we can make it and deliver it anywhere in the world. It may take a week or a month or much longer, depending on the size of the piece and the materials used,” he explained.
The fascinating thing about the glassmakers is that they have not gone to schools to learn the how to do their job. They have slowly, over years, acquired the skills and as the skills and abilities develop, they become artists.
