Glass Message Board
Glass Identification - Post here for all ID requests => Glass Animals & Figurines => Topic started by: Terry on August 02, 2016, 12:40:08 PM
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I am trying to trace the origin of this black and gold bird. I suspect it may be a Martinuzzi design as the technique seems very similar to the elephant shown in "Animals in Glass". Venini commented that "Similar birds belong to Martinuzzi drawings but we can't say that this is a Venini one." The base is highly polished and the gold seems to be on the surface (uncased). The bird is about 15cm tall and has an unusual round, flattened bill tip.
Can anyone help?
Terry
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Terry, you asked if it could be Isle of Wight? Yes, that is possible. It has the typical look of black Azurene. I have never seen an IOWSG bird of this shape and size before, but it is possible that one of the glass makers tried something a little different from the norm.
Anton
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Thanks Anton and all who replied to my numerous emails. Still no wiser. Any new viewers with thoughts?
Terry.
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I'm very much with Anton on this. It isn't a known shape with that very long tail, but everything else about it screams IoWSG and it's perfectly possible it was an experiment.
Unless it's St John, which is sort of related. :)
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Thanks Sue.
Can you give me some more info on St John? Dr Google is of no help.
Kind regards,
Terry
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St John was a small company licensed to make some Maximals and Minimals, but they didn't adhere to the conditions of the license and things went a bit pear-shaped.
Some of the things they made were not of high enough quality and they changed designs in a manner Michael Harris wasn't overly happy with.
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Thanks Sue.
Another correspondent suggested Tweedsmuir Glass. I am awaiting a reply to my email.
It seems a very well made and designed piece. Can I conclude it is not Murano?
Kind regards,
Terry
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Chris Dodds' Tweedsmuir glass animals tend to be sitting on small round pad feet.
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Thought I would run this by people again.
After several years of diligent enquiry, I am still no further advanced. To my mind it is a simple but beautifully designed piece with very striking features (the bill for example). I suspect it is not IOW as everyone I have approached says NO. My initial thought that it may have something to do with Martinuzzi (after leaving Venini ?) was brought about by this quote out of " Press kit: Exhibition: Napoleone Martinuzzi. Venini 1925 – 1931" which said " Martinuzzi’s personal research for intrinsic plasticity becomes apparent in this very lively series of animal shapes in bubble glass, glass paste, or cased glass with gold leaf. Colourful elephants, highly expressive or even oversimplified horses, elegant pheasants and a wide variety of small little birds. Martinuzzi’s ability to interpret this subject seemed to have no limit.”
If not, does anyone know where "Azurene" was "invented"? Did IOW adopt it from some other manufacturer or was it copied from them by someone else?
Any thoughts?
Kind regards,
Terry
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I'm sure Sue can give more information than I can about Azurene glass, but I know it did involve William Walker... over to you Sue:-
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It looks as though it is made with gold and silver leaf.
John
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Yes John you are correct. There are bands of gold and bands of silver that sometimes overlay.
A couple more photos attached.
Terry
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Any chance that this may be an example of Yokohama technique or similar (Giulio Radi style)?
Terry
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I have been looking ever since this was first posted here, and so far found nothing else like it.
Have you asked Timothy Harris at IOWSG if he thinks this might have been a trial piece of theirs Terry?
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Elizabeth Harris and Ron Wheeler (retired Sales and Marketing Manager for IOWSG) both say that it is not an IOWSG design but Ron believes it may be an experimental piece by St Johns because of the eye detail.
Does anyone know if this black azurene technique was copied by other Murano or European glass makers?
Thanks for all you comments,
Terry
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It looks a little bit too well modelled and too nicely finished off for St John's, but it is a possibility.
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They have been using gold leaf on Murano for well over a century, this could be from the island. The use of gold leaf on black glass was not original to IoWSG, their development was to use vacuum to hold gold leaf in place on the marver - leaf is so thin and light it can be a nightmare to control and it blows around with the lightest breath of wind inevitably sticking to the wrong things and getting folded up and ruined in the process.
John
Renato Anatra made a very similar form.
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Silver foil was also used in Murano.
They did have more trouble with silver than gold at IoWSG, it reacts with the glass to produce colours at fairly low temperatures, but they refined it for themselves, eventually.
As John said, it was the (unpatented - so anybody can use it) suction marver for holding the foil in place that was the contibution to the process made by Michael Harris.
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Thanks John and Sue.
I will try to chase down the Anatra possibility. There may be a link with the eye detail.
Kind regards,
Terry