The Glass in Venice Prize

The ceremony, conducted by the curator and gallery owner Jean Blanchaert, kicked off with the official awarding of the prestigious The Glass in Venice Prize, organised by the Veneto Institute of Sciences, Letters and Arts and by the Civic Museums Foundation of Venice and given to glass artists and masters who particularly distinguished themselves by working in the great tradition of the Murano glassmaking school or, in the world, through different techniques.

The winners of the eleventh edition are the artists Guido Ferro because “belongs to one of the oldest glassmaking dynasties attested in the history of Murano. An entrepreneur on the island of glass and a promoter or co-participant in important initiatives aimed at promoting Venetian glass production, he is nevertheless recognised here as an undisputed expert in the field of compositions from which, through fusion, glass materials of various qualities and extraordinary colours are obtained. This work of his was not only a professional commitment in his life but above all a passion, which still stimulates him to experiment in the conviction that even in a technology that took off five thousand years ago there is still much to discover”. Last but not least, Giorgio Vigna for the following motivation: “Internationally recognised artist from Verona and Milan by adoption, creator of works for the body, sculptures and installations, he deals with different materials, of which he is a profound connoisseur. From the very beginning of his career, glass takes on a significant centrality. He works closely with the master glassmakers of Murano in various furnaces on the island. His works are inspired by the most primordial nature, in which he mixes geological suggestions with references to water, earth, fire and wind. He combines glass and copper in a series of creations with a strong evocative character where the incandescence of colourless molten glass condenses and sublimates into another material”.

The winners of the Glass in Venice Award are exhibited at the entrance of Palazzo Loredan, home of the Veneto Institute of Sciences, Letters and Arts.