: More than 200 glass artworks from the furnaces on the island of
Murano will illuminate the galleries of the Detroit Institute of
Arts (DIA) in the exhibition "Murano: Glass from the Olnick Spanu
Collection," December 12 to February 27.
Murano glass is prized for contemporary elegance, radical design
and craftsmanship and the works shown are drawn exclusively from
the collection of Nancy Olnick and Giorgio Spanu and curated by
Venetian-born glass scholar and historian Marino Barovier.
The North American tour of the exhibition offers a comprehensive
look at works from 1914 to 2002 by the most highly regarded
artists and designers from the Murano workshops.
Pieces from the early to mid 1900s by artists including Carlo
Scarpa, Paolo Venini Thomas Stearns, and Vittorio Zecchin will be
on view along with contemporary works by such artists as
Cristiano Bianchin, Laura Diaz de Santillana, Lino Tagliapietra
and Giogio Vigna. This juxtaposition will provide and
understanding of the evolution of the art of glassmaking in
Murano.
Exclusively in Detroit, the exhibition will be supplemented with
"Detroit Collects Murano Glass," an exhibition of approximately
20 objects of Murano glass from local collectors. Included are
several pieces of vintage Murano glass from the 1950s and 60s
with works from noted artist Fulvio Bianconi, as well as works
from contemporary artists such as Yoichi Ohira.
New York collectors Olnick and Spanu started acquiring glass in
the 1980s, with their first purchase, "Clessidre," a green and
blue hourglass case designed by Paolo Venini. Since then, the
Olnick Spanu collection of Twentieth Century Murano glass has
grown to almost 500 objects.
A 312-page catalog, edited by Susan Sacks and photographed by
Luca Vignelli, is available in soft cover for $45. To order,
www.dia.org.
