Topic: Best example of Bullicante - Any Ideas who made it?

[ardy]

I was given this as a present and it is a wonderful thing. It weighs 3.4kg and is 22cm wide (8.5") and 90mm high (3.5").

The work in it is perfect.

[Lustrousstone]

Isn't this sfumato?

[chopin-liszt]

Where do you find the sort of people that give you presents like this? 

The work looks a little like a more sophisticated version of the feathery effect produced by Konnstglas Ronneby in their medium sized birds. I'm not sure they would have managed this fabulous bowl and if they had, I'm sure we'd already know about it.

[KevinH]

Ardy, do you have good reason to think this belongs in the Murano / Italy forum?

As for "sfumato", I think that usually has "wispy sections" which create a bubble at various points of joining. But this bowl has what looks like precisely set bubbles ("bullicante") within lines of a mesh and with the mesh following the bubbles. On the other hand

[ardy]

HI Christine, I can see what you mean but I have a few A.S. pieces with sfumato and it is normally a more encompassing effect than this one. I have no idea how they could have got that effect.

Sue, My partner bought it for my birthday a while ago. I think you might be onto something regarding K.R. had a good look but nothing in bowls, however, there were several with a similar mesh background. Are they still active?

Kevin - Not sure about anything to do with this bowl but Sue might have something. The bullicante seemed to make this the obvious starting point.
It is the precision of the manufacture and the perfect swirl of the base that has me amazed, then all set in sommerso.

[BDG55]

No idea as to the maker but couple of quick notes:  Sfumato pieces are typically gray with twisted gray ropes.  On occasion, you'll find Sfumato pieces in brown, but these are usually made elsewhere... Sweden comes to mind.

The bullicante  can be achieved two ways;  The formed hot glass is rolled over a spiked "tray" placed on the marver leaving indentations in the glass. The exterior is then covered in clear glass leaving the imprint of the bubbles suspended between the glass.   A second way, and one that I believe was used on your piece, is blowing the glass into a spike-lined mold leaving the indentations which are  covered in clear glass.  This is a much more precise way of laying the bubbles being that the piece is completely blown into the mold, and there's no further blowing involved leaving the indentations in perfect alignment as they were in the mold.   

It's a beautiful piece!

[chopin-liszt]

Ardy, I'm delighted that your partner has such good taste and knows you so well that they can chose something so lovely for you. Hang onto them!

It there a deep ambery colour at the centre, or is that just an artifact of the light?
With a mention of Sweden, and if that colour is there, might it have something to do with John Orwar Lake and Ekenas?

It is strange that something so good is, so far, unknown to us. I'm starting to suspect it might be some unique special something.
It there were a fair number of them around, we'd have seen them before.

Is there any age-related wear anywhere around the base?

[ardy]

Hi Sue - it has some scratches to the base but not enough so that you would claim it is 1950's piece. There again it might have always been a showpiece.

It has 3 imperfections inside the sommerso layer which I thought might have been from use as an ashtray but when I tried to clean it, it was obvious that they are inside the glass.

[ardy]

BDG55 - thanks for the insight into bullicante manufacture, I did not know that.

Regarding sfumato, I have several Archmede Seguso pieces with this effect and they come in several colours, see attached.

[BDG55]

First of all, thanks for the nice comment in regards to the bullicante.
On your pic... I couldn't see enough to see the transitions in the color, but I believe you have a Seguso Polveri piece.