1940s BAROVIER GOLD SOMEMRSO GLASS BOWL WITH SCROLL HANDLES

Beautiful and rare 1940s Ercole Barovier Murano glass bowl with scroll handles.

30cm x 15cm x 10cm, in good condition. Made with real 24K gold aventurine.

 Ercole Barovier is now considered one of the most charismatic figures in the history of Murano glass and one of the leading lights in the revival of the island's glass industry in the first few decades of the twentieth century. His enormous contribution to traditional Murano glass, in terms of knowledge, style and new techniques, is still felt today in the continuing development of glassmaking on the island.

Born in 1889 to a Muranese family that could trace its origins back to the 13th century, Barovier did not train as a glassblower but had a great passion for glass and quickly distinguished himself as an innovative designer. He joined Artisti Barovier in 1919 at the age of thirty and found success designing vases in the mosaic technique. In 1930 he produced the critically acclaimed and award-winning Primavera series, the success of which encouraged him to continue his experiments.

Throughout the 1930s and 1940s Barovier’s dedication to the technical mastery of experimental glass brought him international fame. His thick-walled vessels decorated with un-melted pigments, highly textured surfaces, raw metallic inclusions and expressive hot-work applications helped to create a new aesthetic vocabulary for Murano glass in the first half of the 20th century.