Masterworks 
21 November 2017
Masterworks 
45

Carlo Scarpa

Tessuto vase, model 3900

Venini
Italy, c. 1940
vertical amethyst, yellow and lattimo glass canes with battuto surface carving 13 h × 5½ dia in (33 × 14 cm)
estimate: $20,000–30,000
result: $20,000
follow artist
own a similar item?
free evaluation

Signed with three-line acid stamp to underside: [Venini Murano Italia].
provenance: Private Collection, New York
literature: Carlo Scarpa: Venini 1932-1947, Barovier, ppg. 267-268 illustrate similar examples Venetian Glass: The Nancy Olnick and Giorgio Spanu Collection, The American Craft Museum, ppg. 83, 213 illustrate similar example Venini Glass: Catalogue 1921-2007, Deboni, fig. 99 illustrates similar example

print

Carlo Scarpa at Venini

Tessuto is one of a number of series envisioned by Carlo Scarpa during a time when war was overtaking Europe. Designed in 1940 and exhibited and the Biennale of that year, Tessuto pieces were initially made in very limited numbers as Venini was unable to effectively distribute glass outside of Italy during this period.

Tessuto stands as a vivid example of Carlo Scarpa’s ability to pre-vision stylistic trends long before they arrived.

Ultimately, this series was not put into production until after the war, when it was immediately recognized as an embodiment of the fresh, vibrant, graphic style that came to be associated with Venini glass of the 1950s. In this way, Tessuto stands as a vivid example of Carlo Scarpa’s ability to pre-vision stylistic trends long before they arrived.

Occasionally, Tessuto vessels were brought to another level of quality through Battuto carving. The piece presented here is a fine and rare example of this costly and time consuming process which gives the piece a subtle, faceted matte finish and adds another layer of visual complexity.

45