Topic: Cute Chinese copy of Murano bull

[Cathy B]

Have you guys come across this beastie before? The differences between this and the originals are pretty stark, but it's sooo cute! There's something almost Asian-cartoonish about the curves of this bull.

http://www.made-in-china.com/showroom/zibogifts/product-detailhbBQsVlCCAYr/China-Glass-Bull-53344-.html

[Ivo]

I remember these when I had a tour of the Zibo stand at the Frankfurt fair some years ago. It was a dazzling array of thousands of paperweights stacked high to the ceiling. I think they figured, if we have to ship by container anyway we might as well fill it...

[Carolyn Preston]

Anybody remember the children's story about Ferdinand the bull, that didn't want to go into bullfights. He'd much rather stay in the meadow smelling the flowers....Well, I think we should call this bull Ferdinand. 

Carolyn

[Artofvenice]

For the low and medium quality glassworks the competition with the chineese glassworks is pratically lost. They are working with the same techniques and same subjects and the final result is pretty good, compare with the first ugly copies of 10 years agoo. The high end glass is out of their range for now, may be because they are more interested in quantities than in quality, but I think that if one day they will verify a good demand for such kind of "quality glass" in few steps they will reach also the higher skills.   :ac1:

I see a very bad future for Murano   

Sincerely

Alex
www.artofvenice.com

[TxSilver]

What you say is so true, Alex. The Chinese were known as great artisans before Communist times. The recent high production pieces, I'm sure, are like a black eye to many of the talented Chinese artists. Perhaps in the future the skills of the glassmakers will be more appreciated and higher wages will be paid, pushing the prices of their wares up. It is difficult to compete with the low prices. For now, I trust the glass of Murano. The glass does not yellow or become cloudy with age. I don't know what the Chinese pieces will look like a few years down the road.

[soledivo]

Alex and Anita have said it all, maybe the global credit crises will slow the flow.

To me it is such a shame, true Chinese glass of the quality history would dictate would be so very collectible.

Oh well "wish in one hand"