BOTTLE MONOFIORI LAURA DE SANTILLANA VENINI

BOTTLE MONOFIORI LAURA DE SANTILLANA VENINI

Career of Paolo Venini

In 1921 Venini and Cappellin opened a glassworks on the islands of Murano, the historic glass production centre in the Venice lagoon, under the name of Vetri Soffiati Muranesi Cappellin Venini & C. With Luigi Ceresa and Emilio Hochs as investors, they agreed to buy Andrea Rioda’s recently closed Murano glassworks, hire the blowers of the former company and keep Rioda himself as technical director of the company.

Their plans quickly went wrong, however, when Rioda died before production began. Many of the leading glassblowers decamped to found a competing company under the name of Successori Andrea Rioda. However, the company was also launched successfully and prospered with the support of the founders’ distribution contacts in Milan. The company also benefited from a commitment to introducing new and modern design concepts.

Following controversy, Cappellin withdrew from the firm in 1925, taking most of the company’s master glassmakers and launching a competitor. Venini reorganised with new blowers and, first as Soffiati Muranesi Venini & C. and then as Venini & C., achieving a leading design position among Murano companies.

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